Darkness Fast Approaches
by Luna Silvereyes
Summary: Kaiba is faced with a problem. A problem he'd rather not deal with, but really has no choice. However, when fate decides to play games with the memory, there's really nothing you can do but play along. Yugioh X Elfin Lied crossover
1. Escape

Darkness fast Approaches

Darkness fast Approaches

Luna Silvereyes

A/N: I'm doing a Yu-Gi-Oh Elfin Lied crossover fic. I got the idea out of nowhere. Well, my other Yu-Gi-Oh story, Steel sort of inspired it. Lets' say I change it around a little, eh? Heh, heh. This should be fun. I've grown rather morbid lately, haven't I? Looks like it's time for another bout of dark stories. By the way, my computer is still broken, so updates are as of now, uncertain. This story will follow a similar plot to Elfin Lied's, but with a few twists here and there that I created myself. You'll notice the first one when I describe my Diclonius. Don't complain. I have watched the anime, I know what's supposed to go down, but I'm making a few changes.

**Escape**

"Fire! Fire! You idiots, fire while she's—_uuaagh!_"

The commander's voice died out in a choked scream as the invisible hands ripped through his torso, leaving his stunned officers gaping in shock at the tall figure approaching them. The bandages and facial mask covered her face, but they remembered all too well the look of pure hatred burning deep within those bluish-black orbs the bandages hid. Her body was covered with a special outfit like a swimsuit, designed to monitor her heartbeats per second and keep a steady flow of nutrition to her bony body. All muscle tissue and fat substance that should have existed had been used up and every bone could be seen through her thin skin. God knew what was holding her up.

_"Cretins. I'll slaughter all of you."_ She growled.

"Ah, run!" one officer cried, turning and dashing back the way they'd come.

"Stop!" a female voice cried out from far behind them. The tall girl paused a moment and both she and the officers turned. A woman with flowing red hair and thick glasses hurried forward, pausing to catch her breath in heavy wheezing gasps. "Please, you mustn't hurt her! Just let her walk through! She won't hurt us!" she gasped.

"Emery, you know too well how little your advice means to us. Now get out of our way!" The leading officer barked, slapping her roughly. As he did, he let out a gargling wail as his head seemed to explode from his body. The rest of him slowly toppled to the floor as the others watched in a daze. All heads turned to the girl.

"Freya, please!" the woman begged. "I'm begging you, your mother to go back! I want more than anything for you to be safe and your vectors won't hold out forever! Please!"

Freya turned her head, her breathing heavy through the thick metal covering the lower part of her face. "_No, Mama. I won't go back. I can't bear to be trapped like this anymore. I haven't seen the light of day or breathed fresh air since I was brought into this miserable life. I will spare you, Mama. But I will show no mercy to everyone else here, for putting me and my sisters through this." _

Emery forced back the tears from her eyes as she listened to Freya's sad speech. "Freya, we will allow you to escape, but don't kill anyone else." She tried to persuade.

_"Forgive me, Mama." _

Emery screamed as all around her, the bodies of the officers exploded in a shower of blood and their screams filled the narrow, dimly lit chamber. Emery cowered down, her hands over her head as Freya approached, a grotesque echo resounding as she stepped through the slick blood covering the floor. Emery felt a strange sensation like wind on her face and a heavy force on her shoulder. She gasped lightly as she felt herself being lifted to her feet and her eyes widened as Freya suddenly appeared directly before her.

"Freya, are you going to kill me?" she whispered, terrified.

"_I won't kill you, Mama. I will permit you to live and move on. Have another daughter, one who is not a freak, a mutant and a curse on the world. But never think of me again." _

Freya's vectors, like number 35's had been, became visible to Emery as their frequency waves increased sharply. The ghostly sight of them was always terrifying. Like number 35, Freya was far different and superior from other Diclonius. Instead of bright or faded pink hair, Freya's was jet black, enabling her to hide better provided she kept her horns covered. It flowed in a wavy cascade down to her ankles. But most incredible were her vectors, which were strong enough to cut steel like butter. Even more frightening were the number of vectors she had. It was discovered that Freya had been born with the ability to generate vectors, one per year, it was estimated. Her current total was over forty, maybe more. Her strange ability resembled that of a starfish, regenerating lost limbs. But she had no need to lose vectors before she could grow them. Emery remembered too well the pains taken to control Freya once she discovered what she could do. It had been so bad, that another Diclonius, an older female named Terra, had been brought in to train Freya. Within days, the technician assigned to Freya had arrived one morning to find the body of Terra in pieces on the floor and Freya busily rolling her severed head around absently. After that, Freya's confinement got worse. Only three people knew of her and they all helped to seal her into a double-confined, air and water-locked room. She was to be tranquilized, chained at the ankles, neck, waist and wrists to the inside of the enclosure and sharp metallic spikes lining the inner walls, jutting out about three feet. The enclosure itself was about fifteen feet in diameter with a little space for her to move around in. Emery was the only one Freya would allow within her twenty-three meter range and eventually, even Emery would be repelled. She was fortunate that all Freya would do was just gently pick her up with her vectors and drop her out of her range.

Now, somehow, Freya had escaped her horrific prison and was begging Emery to let her go. Tears in her eyes, Emery sighed wearily. "All right, Freya. But promise me one thing. I can't ask you not to kill, it's your instinct. But I can ask you to kill only those who threaten you and the friends around you. Not all humans are bad, Freya. I raised you in the hopes I could force you to overcome your instinct and celebrate life with humans, as a Diclonius. But, sadly, you turned out even worse than Mariko did."

_"Mama, Mariko lived thousands of miles from here. Even from that great distance, I sensed her presence calling for me. She was my sister. Nana was my sister. Even Lucy was my sister and now, all three of them are dead. In this new place, new country, and new world, I'll take my revenge on cruelty toward our kind, Mama. You can't tell me to do otherwise. However, I will promise you that much; that I shall kill those who threaten me and those around me." _

Emery gave her a small smile. "I believe you, sweetheart. But, you know that I cannot let you go without reporting your escape."

_"True." _

Emery smiled. "You have twenty minutes until it becomes a problem."

Freya slowly started past her. "_Goodbye, Mama." _She whispered. When the darkness at the end of the hall swallowed her up, Emery collapsed on the blood-soaked floor, sobbing uncontrollably. With trembling hands, she pulled her phone out of her pocket, praying that she could get hold of the chief.

After approximately ten minutes, her nerves grew too frazzled to wait and she shakily dialed.

"Chief Kasaki, we have a problem. Number 32 has escaped!"


	2. Planning

A/N: Here's the second chapter where they decide how they're going to solve this dilemma

**A/N: **Here's the second chapter where they decide how they're going to solve this dilemma. Let me know how it is.

**Planning**

"Damn it!" the chief bellowed, slamming his hand down on the counter in the control room. The other employees looked on nervously. Emery stood with her head down, her hands folded, looking more vulnerable than a mouse before a hungry cat. "I'm sorry, sir. Freya promised me she wouldn't kill! I trust her!"

The chief whirled. "Emery, do you remember when we first brought number 32 here? She was the sweetest, most adorable three-year-old anyone had ever seen. She was polite, caring and considerate—except for one tiny flaw. The minute you turned your back on her, _snap!_ You found yourself before the golden gates without even knowing what happened or how you got there!"

Emery flinched under his harsh tone, but remained calm. "Sir, Freya's had a hard life. She's bitter, angry and determined. She wouldn't even listen to me when I told her to go back. But she listened and agreed when I told her not to kill. She only wants to be free. She said that she wouldn't kill unless she was threatened."

The chief eyed her furiously. "You made her promise _that_!?" he roared. Emery whimpered and flinched. Bad move.

"It seemed reasonable." She whispered. The chief snarled angrily and hurled a paperweight at a nearby computer, missing the worker by mere millimeters as he ducked to safety with a yell. The computer exploded in a display of sparks and crackling static.

"Emery, how could you fall for such an act?" he growled.

"What do you mean, sir?" Emery whimpered.

"Emery, you god-damn fool, the Diclonius are threatened by all humans that cross their paths! They sense that humans are their enemies; therefore, they will kill them without a thought! That, or transfer their DNA through an artery, unnoticed, and further their own lines! The human has no idea of it until their children are born with horns sticking out of their skulls! That's how number 35 came into being!"

Emery swallowed. "What do you mean? Number 35 was—"

The chief cut her off. "Number 35 was the late chief Kurama's Diclonius daughter and the biggest monster of them all until Freya showed up. The only reason Freya was here is because of her damned instinct! Chief Kurama had been touched by number 3, a younger Diclonius who managed to escape and was killed by an employee and friend of Kurama. Thanks to number 3, number 35 was born some years later. Now, the biggest god-damned problem since that demon-child has escaped and it's thanks to you, Emery!"

"Freya isn't like that!" Emery shouted, suddenly defensive of the Diclonius. "I spent my whole life teaching her! I only brought her in because you demanded it!"

"I demanded it because she would have killed you, too, Emery. That's the nature of the Diclonius! We ordered her confinement because she killed her own parents!"

Emery faltered a moment. The death of her beloved sister was still fresh in her mind. "All right." She snapped. "So I'm not Freya's real mother. However, I am her aunt and I share the same DNA as her mother and Freya herself. Freya can sense that and she was confused by my similar appearance to that of Emily. If Freya wanted to kill me, she would have done so when I tried to stop her."

The chief sighed irritably. "No, she didn't kill you, Emery, but she did kill Emily and Robert and she did kill every single guard we sent against her. She's worse than Lucy and Mariko combined. This is why we have to send our best operatives against her and bring her back. I also want number 16 released for this job."

Emery gasped. "No, number 16 likes to torture her victims. You saw what she did to that technician who was only trying to feed her last week. I worked with number 16 under Freya's protection before her advanced confinement. Number 16 has had a violent childhood and despises everything. How will you control her?"

The chief reached into his pocket and pulled out a tiny receiver and remote. "I took a page from Kurama's book. I used a similar device to the bomb implanted in the body of number 35 at her birth."

Emery gasped and covered her mouth. "You didn't!" she cried. "I may dislike number 16, but you can't blow her up if she refuses to cooperate!"

"It's not a bomb, Emery." The chief said coolly. "It's a tiny vial of deadly toxins; the disease smallpox to be exact. In her sterile environment, number 16 has never even contracted a common cold germ. If I enter the correct code, the vial within her body will disintegrate, releasing the virus into her system."

Emery was appalled. "Why are you doing this? It would be more merciful to shoot number 16 on the spot. A virus like that would kill her within hours."

The chief grinned grimly. "Yes. Number 16 likes to torture others. I figure, 'she who lives by the sword, dies by the sword'."

Emery scowled angrily. "You're horrible."

"Now, enough of this." The chief barked. "Start the protocols for releasing number 16. Emery, you're familiar with this one. I want you to oversee her release."

Emery looked up, both hopeful and horrified. "Does this mean I'll get to go along in the search for Freya?" she asked.

"No, of course not." The chief snapped. "Number 16 might kill Freya. I doubt you'll want to see that. Now, go with the techs to number 16's holding chamber. She's chained rather well, but stay at a distance of ten meters. That's the limit of her range."

Emery did her best to keep from crying. "Yes sir." She choked.

She left the room with the men.

/ooo/

A young girl with long bright pink hair tied in a ponytail looked up as her chamber door opened. Her dull pink eyes narrowed and a sly grin appeared on her face. "Ooh, this should be fun." She cackled, straining against the chains holding her. Emery entered with the five men, all of them holding tranquilizer guns. The girl's face turned into a pout, her lower lip jutting out. "Aw, no fair. My vectors won't do any good against tranquilizers. What do you want, anyway?"

Emery approached, being careful to stay ten meters away. Without Freya to protect her with her forty-some vectors, Emery was completely vulnerable. Number 16, or Rumi as she was generally called, had a total of twelve vectors and was the third most dangerous Diclonius in the facility. Emery knelt down to appear less threatening. No matter how cruel they might be, it always broke her heart to see this near children chained up like this. But she knew that for some of them, it was for the best. Many could be quite dangerous.

"Rumi," Emery spoke calmly and quietly. "Do you remember me?"

Rumi snorted. "Duh! You're that creepy lady with the tame Diclonius. I think her name was Felicity. Something fancy. What do you want?"

Emery resisted the urge to correct her. She'd learn everything in time. "Rumi, I have a small favor to ask you."

Rumi grinned. "Come closer, I can hardly hear you." She said, suddenly friendly. Emery sighed. "I'll speak more loudly." She said in a much louder tone. Rumi scowled. "Number 32 has escaped the facility."

Here, Rumi's eyes went wide. "You mean the starfish freak?" she shrieked, referring to Freya's generation ability. She became haughty. "I thought she was your little pet, the traitor."

"Rumi, Freya was my daughter. She was tired of being kept in advanced confinement. Be grateful you've got light to see around you. Freya couldn't take it anymore and she broke out. We…we need you to help bring her back."

Rumi frowned. "What's in it for me?"

Emery looked back at the men behind her. One of them shrugged. Emery hated herself for what she was about to do. "We'll allow you to move freely about the room—unchained." She said, knowing the chief would never agree to it. Rumi instantly brightened. "Wow! It's a deal, lady! That's the next best thing to being free! Sure! When do we leave? Hey, can I wear something cute? How about something like that white coat you're wearing? I've always loved your strange human fashions!"

Emery stopped. For a moment, Rumi sounded just like an average teenager, discussing shopping with her mother. She smiled wearily. "Rumi, you can wear whatever you want." She said. She stood up. "If you promise to keep your vectors away, I'll let you wear my coat right this minute."

Rumi let out a squeal and started to squirm in her chains excitedly. "Wow!! Sure, of course! Come over!"

Heart pounding, Emery slowly started forward. She had no idea if this was another of Rumi's tricks. The Diclonius could be extremely devious when they wanted to be. Some of them had been known to hide their vectors after being confined in an attempt to prove their innocence, even against bullets. It only ever lasted up to a month, however.

After ten steps and two meters into Rumi's range, when nothing happened, Emery began to feel like Rumi was really telling the truth. Rumi started to bounce up and down on her folded legs, whining in excitement. "Ooh, what's taking you so long!? You're in my range; if I wanted to kill you, I would! Hurry! I'm so excited!"

Emery sighed and walked a little faster. She reached Rumi's side and knelt down, holding the coat out to her. Her heart thudded in her chest as she stared into the little face of her possible killer. One wrong move and she'd be history. She unlocked the chains around Rumi's wrists and waited while she rubbed them and sighed. "Ooh, that feels so heavenly." She murmured. She looked at Emery and there was no hostility in her eyes, a pretty good sign for such a snippy Diclonius.

"Okay, can I wear the coat?" she asked. Emery smiled and nodded. Rumi turned and Emery carefully slipped the coat on her, gently pulling her arms through the long sleeves. Rumi shakily stood up, admiring herself. "Oh, it's _so _cute!"

She spun in a circle, the heavy coat swamping her little frame. Emery slowly began to feel more at ease around her. Rumi turned. "Okay, now lets' get down to business."

Emery gasped as she was suddenly lifted high into the air. She felt something heavy closing down on her windpipe and clawed desperately at her throat. She opened one eye and glanced down at Rumi, still smiling up at her.

"You promised!" Emery gasped.

"I know. I don't want to get your blood on this pretty coat."

She cried out suddenly and fell to the floor, clutching her abdomen. "Ow! What was…that?"

She started to sway gently and with a sigh, fell over, unmoving. Emery tumbled to the ground and slowly got to her feet, trembling. One of the men dashed over while the others began to bind Rumi. He put a hand on her shoulder.

"Are you all right?" he inquired anxiously. Emery nodded, shaken, staring at the limp form of number 16, still wearing the coat. "Yes. I was foolish. I truly thought I had her for a second."

"Damn monsters." The man growled, shaking his head at Rumi's limp body being loaded into a bag for transport. "They enjoy taking advantage of kindness like that. Come on. Lets' get her ready to go. We have to catch number 32."

Emery felt her heart wrench at the sound of Freya's number, but she said nothing. She just watched as Rumi was carried out.

And she followed, like a lamb to the slaughter.

A/N: How was that? I wasn't too cruel was I? Oh well. Rumi is a fun character to write for. I'm not sure how many Diclonius I'll create. By the way, is there a plural for that word?


	3. Discovery

A/N: Here's where you discover that little twist I told you about

**A/N: **Here's where you discover that little twist I told you about. It's about Kaiba meets Freya and why it's a huge twist. Read on to find out.

**Discovery**

"Okay, spill it, what's the matter?"

"I miss mom and dad. I wish they were here with us, right now."

Two young boys slowly walked along a deserted roadway by the sea. The younger one held the hand of the older one and remained shrunken within himself, as though trying to hide from the world. The older one held the expression of a hardened individual, determined to protect himself and his brother from everything. But if you looked closely enough, you'd see the same sadness and feeling of abandonment his brother felt.

"I know, Moki. I miss them, too. But we're on our own now. We have to make it on our own, now."

The little one sniffed sadly. "But Seto, won't they come back for us?" he said.

The older boy shook his head grimly. "No, Mokuba. They're gone. There's no other way to tell you that. Sorry."

Mokuba turned to the water and leaned on the railing of the bridge, sniffling pitifully. "I miss them, Seto." He said again. Seto just looked away, unable to think of anything else to say. The lingering pain had numbed him as well.

"We should be heading back. Mr. Kurosawa will be mad at us again for leaving." Seto said quietly.

Mokuba barely heard him. He was staring dumbly at something by the water. "Seto!" he cried. "Look, down there!"

Seto hurried over and peered down at where his brother was pointing. His eyes widened. "What is that?" he asked. He turned to his brother. "Come on, lets' see what it is!"

He started to climb down the rocks. Mokuba briefly paused, wondering if it was dangerous, but quickly followed his brother down.

The tide was out, so they were able to walk on the sand toward the thing lying at the water's edge. They cautiously approached.

"I think it's a girl." Seto said.

Washed up on the sand was what appeared to be a seventeen or eighteen year-old girl with extremely long black hair and thick bandages covering her eyes. Poking out through the bandages on the top of her head were what looked like little ears. They carefully made their way over. They each took hold of one of her arms and dragged her out of the water and further onto the beach. Seto turned her head to the side and out of the sand. His eyes widened when he saw the strange metal mask covering her nose and mouth and strapped around her head. It had tiny little pinpoints covering the front. He guessed they were for air. She was wearing a strange suit that had different types of cables hanging limply from the back. But the most noticeable feature was how thin she was. He was reminded of those nature shows his mother used to watch about rescued animals. Sometimes, there were dogs and horses that were literally nothing but skin and bones.

"Geez," he muttered. "She looks like she could use a good meal." He looked at his brother, crouched down in front of her. Mokuba nodded. "Yeah! Or ten of them!" he added. "Maybe we should take her back with us. I'm sure that Mr. Kurosawa will be willing to help her."

Seto frowned. "I doubt it, Moki. He wasn't too thrilled about taking us in, remember?"

Mokuba sighed. "Yeah." He mumbled. "But we can't just leave her here. She looks terrible! You can see all of her bones and everything!"

Seto looked back down at the girl. He was right; she was pretty scrawny. She looked as though she hadn't been fed anything in weeks, months even.

"But even if we could, she's way too heavy for us, even if she's like this." Seto said to his brother. "We should probably just—"

"Look!" Mokuba cried, pointing at her again. "She moved!"

Seto watched her closely. He was right. She was flexing her fingers in the sand and he was sure he heard a faint moan. "She's alive." He mumbled.

Slowly, the strange girl shakily heaved herself up to a kneeling position, digging her fists into the sand in front of her to hold herself up. She sighed in a muffled voice through the mask. "_Where am I?_"

"Hi." Mokuba said. "Glad you're awake. Are you okay?"

He didn't notice as her vectors flew out and surrounded him. Through the thin slit in her bandages, Freya was able to see he was still smiling up at her. Her vectors remained poised around him, just in case. She kept them at a low frequency so he wouldn't see them and raise an alarm.

"Who are you?" another voice asked, startling her badly. She whirled to see another young boy, a tad older than the first sitting about a foot away from her. She poised three vectors at his neck and head, but like the other child, he remained passive. She paused and then retracted her vectors, remembering her mother's words and her own promise. She would wait. If these human children were all right, she would spare them, just as she promised.

"_Who are you?_" she asked in a raspy voice. The younger boy smiled. "Hey, we asked you first! But, if you insist, I'm Mokuba and this is my older brother, Seto. I'm six years old, goin' on seven!" he announced proudly.

Freya hesitated. These children seemed friendly. They didn't even appear bothered by her horns. "_I am called Freya._" She mumbled.

"Wow, pretty name." The one named Mokuba said. "What happened to you? Why are you so skinny?"

"Mokuba, cut it out." His brother snapped.

"Seto, it's true. Freya, are you hungry?"

Freya paused again. She felt her stomach reply for her and she scrunched into a ball, heavily embarrassed. Mokuba laughed. "I'll take that as a yes. I have a candy bar. You can have it if you want."

Freya tilted her head. "_What's a…candy bar?_"

Seto and Mokuba exchanged bewildered glances. "Woah." Seto exclaimed. "I can't believe you don't know what a candy bar is. She can have it, Moki."

"Great. But what about the mask?" Mokuba asked. Freya heard the crinkle of paper as he spoke.

"_My mask has a special opening for consumption of food._" She explained. She felt something being pushed into her hands. She raised it to her face and smelled it. It had a distinctly sweet smell.

"Try it." Seto said. "This is our favorite kind."

Freya reached up to her mask and fumbled with it for a minute. But she was dismayed to realize that being in the water must have damaged it. "_It's broken._" She said.

"Oh, well, let me help." Seto said. He got up and went around behind her. "I can undo the strap for you and get this thing off your face. It looks uncomfortable, anyway."

"_I wouldn't know. I've worn it for most of my life. _" Freya replied unthinkingly. Seto paused, staring at her in amazement. But he went back to the strap. It was attached by a latch and Velcro and took a minute to undo. Finally, there was a sharp _clank_ and it fell from her face into the sand. Freya gasped as cool air hit her flushed face and shakily raised a hand to feel her skin for the first time. She forgot all about the candy bar in her hand.

"If you want, I can also remove the bandages." Seto said. Freya shook her head. "No. Leave those on. My eyes aren't used to light anymore and sudden exposure could harm them." She said in a pleasantly melodious, though quiet voice.

This sentence stunned him even more. Just what had happened to this girl? He decided such questions could wait until after she'd eaten something and rested.

"Try the candy bar." Mokuba said. She heard Seto take a seat in front of her. She raised the candy bar to her face again. She was able to smell it more clearly now. Something deep inside her told her it was edible. She hadn't had solid food for over a year. She took a tentative bite. Suddenly, she gasped and started to wolf it down, not really even tasting it anymore.

"Wow, you _were_ hungry!" Mokuba exclaimed. "I wish we had more, but we don't."

Freya tried to catch her breath. "I haven't had anything solid in so long. That was the best thing I can ever remember having!" she said, smiling a little.

"Why don't you come back with us?" Seto asked. "You should really get some help. You look just a skeleton I saw in a museum once."

Freya chuckled. "I imagine I must look pretty bad. I've been kept in confinement for so long, I just don't know of any other way to live."

"Are you a prisoner?" Mokuba asked.

"Something like that." Freya replied. "But won't your caretakers mind?"

"They shouldn't mind too much." Seto said. "The man who takes care of us also takes care of other orphans. You'll probably just be another opportunity for a good adoption fee. When you're well again, anyway."

Freya paused. "You're orphaned?"

"Yeah." Mokuba said sadly. Freya hummed. "I am too. I…I mean…my…parents are…far away."

"Then we orphans should stick together." Mokuba announced. "We can all protect each other from those stupid bullies at the home."

Freya smiled. "That sounds…nice." She said.

They spent the next twenty minutes or so answering any questions she had. Freya made up a fake background story so as not to alarm them. So far, her mother had been correct. Not all humans were bad.

"So, what about those weird ears of yours?" Mokuba asked. Freya automatically lifted a hand to her right horn. "Oh, these aren't ears, Mokuba. They're horns."

"Horns?" both brothers exclaimed simultaneously.

"I was born with them. They're nothing to worry about. They're just extensions of my skull, that's all." Freya said reassuringly.

"Can I feel one?" Mokuba asked.

"Mokuba." His brother scolded. "That's not something you ask someone. How would you like it if someone asked that to you?"

"But I don't have horns, Seto."

Seto groaned and covered his eyes. "That's not my point." He mumbled. Freya giggled. "He can if he wants. They're nothing special. I don't care for them all that much."

She heard it as the little boy stood up and made his way over. Tiny nerves in her horns allowed her to sense when he gently poked one carefully. "Ooh, that feels weird." He said. "Don't people make fun of you for them?"

"Not where I'm from." Freya answered and immediately regretted it. These kids didn't need to know about the Diclonius. That was no one's business.

Freya yelped a bit when her stomach started to rumble again. Seto laughed. "Come on, lets' go back to the orphanage. The food there isn't all that great, but you might like it."

"I think it's meatloaf night." Mokuba said. Both of them made faces of disgust. Freya stood up shakily. "Okay. You'll have to lead." She said in reference to her bandages. She started to follow their footsteps when the older brother stopped short all of a sudden.

"Hello." He called cautiously. "Can we help you?"

Freya realized there was someone else on the beach.

Mokuba hid behind his brother as he stared at the man standing before them, glaring at the little troupe. "Yeah, you can." He grumbled. "I'll be taking your little friend with me and both of you are going to stand there quietly while I do. Understand?"

"You mean Freya?" Seto asked, suddenly fearful. He looked back at the horned girl standing behind him, staring straight ahead. It was impossible to tell what she was thinking with her eyes covered.

"Yep. Number 32. So just stay put and you won't get hurt." He yelled, whipping an automated rifle off the sand behind him. Seto instinctively placed himself before his brother to protect him. "Stay back! Leave us alone!" he cried, knowing that if the gun went off, there was no way either of them would survive. The bullets would only pass through his body and hit his brother. Literally killing two birds with one stone. He figured that must be how it's done.

"Oh look. The little guy thinks he's real tough. Tell you what. Take a punch, go ahead. See if you can knock me down. If you can, I'll leave you alone."

He started to chuckle. Freya gritted her teeth. It was Johnson, no doubt about it. She'd heard of the creep who'd been sent after her sister, Lucy. She couldn't remember his name, but Lucy had punctured both his eyes and cut off his right hand. This guy was the spitting image. Instantly, she realized twenty-seven of her vectors at a high enough frequency to see. She heard a tiny gasp as Mokuba spotted them. She knew he'd see that they connected to her spinal column and realize she was the one controlling them. Seto hadn't noticed them yet.

"Oh, so now the little freak's gonna protect her new friends. Too bad, you freak-of-nature. This rifle is specially designed to deal with those arms of yours. They're too heavy for any Diclonius to stop."

Seto blinked in surprise. "Dicloni-what?" he asked. He felt a cool wind pass his face and out of the corner of his eye, spotted them. His eyes widened. "W-what the—?" he exclaimed. He whirled to Freya. His heart began to pound in his chest when he saw her. Her hair was blowing around in an unseen breeze and long, ghostly arms surrounded her, floating ominously in the air. They seemed to connect directly into her back. As he watched, they became more clearly visible and seemed to vibrate intensely.

"Seto," she growled. "Take your brother and get behind me. Now."

"Freya, what are those? What are you going to do?"

"Are you going to try to stop him" Mokuba asked fearfully, clinging to his brother's sleeve. "That's a gun, Freya!"

"I said now!" she barked. Seto grabbed Mokuba's arm and dragged him back behind Freya, staring at her with wide eyes. Freya faced Johnson, fists balled, ready to fight. Johnson raised the rifle. "You're coming back with me." He snapped.

"Try me." Freya growled.

"It's a pleasure. But first I think I'll kill your little friends. Just for the fun of it."

Seto turned and shielded his brother's body as the shots rang out from the rifle.

Mokuba's scream could be heard all throughout the city.

A/N: Sorry for the cliffhanger, but I couldn't resist. I mean seriously, you guys are smart and this chapter was too long. I hope it was good. Hope you like.


	4. Secret

A/N: Okay, sorry about the cliffie yesterday

**A/N: **Okay, sorry about the cliffie yesterday. Here, you get to see Freya adjust to a new life. But who knows how long it will last?

**Secret**

Mokuba screamed as the shots whizzed toward them. But as he waited for the inevitable pain from the bullets, he realized that nothing was happening; the shots weren't hitting them.

"Seto?" he said cautiously.

"You okay, Moki?" his brother said over the sound of the rifle still going off.

"Y-Yeah, but why aren't we dead?"

They both looked toward Freya. All around her, the bullets were flying past all three of them, but they weren't hitting anything.

"Damn you!" the strange man yelled. "How the fucking hell are you stopping these rounds? You shouldn't be able to do that!"

"You forget, I'm not like my sisters and brothers. My vectors are special and that there are so many of them helps. Now, I believe, from the clicking of your rifle, you are out of rounds."

Freya grinned as Johnson stared in disbelief at his rifle and through it to the ground, whipping a handgun out of his jacket. "You little bitch!"

He screamed suddenly as Freya rocketed herself into the air, hanging limp for a second with the support of her vectors. Her minimal weight allowed for extreme agility and made for a great advantage. Johnson fired rapidly at her, missing incessantly. Freya hurtled down toward him, launching her vectors into the sand with great force and knocking him off his feet. He fired at her face and she ducked to the side, jumping off the tide wall toward him again. She slammed forcefully into him again and heard a rib crack in his chest. He howled in pain and clutched the fabric of his shirt, writhing in agony. The broken rib must have touched his heart. It was probably the first thing to ever even get close to it. She lowered the frequency of her vectors to an invisible level once more, grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up. She wanted to kill him indiscreetly so that it wouldn't alarm Seto and Mokuba whom she figured were still watching. "Too bad for you." She said to Johnson. "You almost got that big bonus you were hoping for. I'm not that easy to catch, you know."

Johnson smirked. "Do what you want, you bitch. I already gave them the coordinates twenty minutes ago. They're sending number 16 out to bring you back."

Freya snorted. "Do they think I'm stupid? I know how to hide from a Diclonius. That's how I killed number 19."

He started to gurgle and choke, clutching desperately at his neck as she suffocated him. Then, when he ceased moving, she decisively threw him into the ocean, never again to be seen.

"Well, that's finished." She mumbled. She turned to the two brothers. They both had their eyes covered and turned away. Seto was the first to look up. "What happened?" he asked. Freya smiled. "I scared him off. He won't come back again." She said.

Mokuba smiled, but Seto remained skeptical. "Then, what were those things?" he asked. Freya tilted her head. "What things?"

"Those creepy floating arms you were using." He said. "I saw them. They were coming from your back."

Freya looked away. "You must have been seeing things. I don't have anything like that." She lied smoothly. The last thing she wanted to do was scare them. Seto hummed, but let the subject drop. He stood up and helped his brother to his feet. "Lets' get going. It's getting late.

Mokuba hurried over and took Freya's hand. "You're coming with us." He said. "I'll be your eyes."

Freya smiled down at where she believed he was. "Thank you." She said. She allowed him to lead her away from the beach toward a new place.

None of them noticed the lights of boats approaching across the bay.

/ooo/

The orphanage accepted Freya easily enough, but nobody would go near her. Her strange outfit, the bandages and the horns all equaled an odd individual whom the other children judged unfit for them to be around. Mr. Kurosawa, the director was skeptical of Freya at first. The horns and her lack of nourishment concerned him. She was separated from the brothers for awhile for a female staff member to inspect her and give an announcement as to her health. Freya put up with it, but was less-than-friendly with the staff member who asked her various questions and an attempt to find out about her parents. All she said in reply was: "I'm an orphan."

When the staff member touched Freya's horns, Freya knocked her backwards with her vectors and the poor girl told the director that she was so fast, she hadn't even seen the punch. Freya's examination stopped there. She refused to let them remove her bandages for fear she'd damage her eyes. Finally, the nurse-in-residence convinced her that her eyes would be ruined if she left them on. Freya finally consented to having them removed, but refused then to open her eyes thereafter. She was given a pair of worn blue jeans and a raggedy old pink shirt to wear. The same girl who'd touched her horns did her hair up into two pigtails tied back with ribbons. Freya said nothing, but sat with her arms folded the entire time, glaring into space.

Finally, Freya was released onto the meager playground to keep herself occupied until a district nurse arrived from two counties away to examine her odd horns. That was what Freya dreaded the most. Hardly anyone outside the facility knew of her extremely rare genetic disease and she preferred to keep it that way.

With her eyes open at a squint, she stumbled over to the swing-set where the two brothers were. They both looked up as she approached. "Freya!" Mokuba cried. "You're finally out! You've been in there forever!"

"They wanted to make sure I was healthy. They're bringing someone in to examine me professionally." Freya replied sullenly. She was starting to regret leaving.

"So," she said. "What do you do around here?"

They exchanged glances. "Not much." Seto said. "It's too cold right now. We're good at building sand structures and stuff. And some jerks inside stole the pieces from the chess set."

Freya blinked. "Do kids pick on you here?" she asked. Seto nodded. "Yeah. It can get kinda bad. But I don't let anyone pick on my little brother and that's final."

"Those big kids stole my soccer ball the other day." Mokuba snapped angrily. He sighed. "Even Seto can't get it back."

Freya frowned. "Who are these kids?" she asked.

"Two boys. One's kinda fat and has darker hair." Mokuba said. "The other is scrawny and blondish. I hate them."

Freya turned, her eyes steely. Without a word, she stalked off, her hair swishing ominously behind her.

"I wonder what that was all about." Seto said, watching her leave.

After awhile, soft footsteps alerted them to Freya's return. She looked triumphant and was bouncing a soccer ball on the ground. She dropped it and gently kicked it over. "Anyone up for showing me how to play?" she asked with a smile. Seto and Mokuba exchanged looks of amazement. "How'd you get it back?" Seto exclaimed. "Those kids are the meanest bullies here! Even I have problems with them."

Freya shrugged. "They just needed a little encouragement. That's all. They gave it back gladly. Will you guys teach me the game?"

"S-Sure." They both said.

After an hour or so of teaching Freya the basic drills, the bell went off signaling it was time for everyone to go in. The sun was beginning to set on the water and by now, Freya had opened her eyes completely. They were a brilliant shade of emerald green with violet flecks.

Mokuba had been right; it was meatloaf night and hardly anyone actually ate. Freya tried one bite, admitted it was gross and finished hers off in a heartbeat.

"I can't help it. I'm starving." She said with a smile.

"Lets' hope you don't wake up in the middle of the night with things growing out of your stomach." Seto said. "Several people here, myself included, can safely say we've seen that stuff move on occasion."

Freya laughed.

After dinner, it was straight to bed for everyone. The bunkrooms were simple and so were the sleeping arrangements. Everyone had a pair of white pajamas and everyone had their own little cot. There were about ten cots to a room. Freya was given a pair of pajamas from a staff member and they still swamped her because she was so skinny. She had a cot beneath the window in a corner. The two brothers and several others all shared the same room. There were two girls; one older and deaf and a younger one who'd been abandoned because she was autistic.

Freya sat on the edge of her cot, staring at it curiously. She cautiously lay down on her back and was surprised at how comfortable it actually was. "It feels nice." She commented to Mokuba and Seto as she sat up again. "I've never had sleeping arrangements like this before."

Again, the brothers exchanged glances. "Freya, it's starting to sound like you've been chained to a rock your entire life." Seto said. "Where are you from?"

Freya glanced around. "Is everyone asleep?" she asked.

Somewhat hopeful that he might get some answers, Seto nodded. Freya smiled. "Good. They seemed tired. They need their rest."

With that, she snuggled down under the blanket and fell quickly into a deep sleep. Seto sighed irritably and flopped down on his side, glowering at the floor.

The following morning, Seto was the first one up and immediately checked for his brother and Freya. Neither of them was there. Panicked, he hurried to get dressed and dashed outside.

"Freya?" he called. "Moki?"

_"Wow! How do you do that? That's amazing!" _

Seto paused. He heard his brother's voice.

_"It comes naturally, Mokuba. I'm a magician. I wish your brother were up. He might like to see this." _

He turned the corner at the rear of the building and gasped.

"What the—?"

Freya looked up and smiled. "Oh, hi sleepyhead." She said. The sticks, leaves, rocks and even a chattering squirrel that had been hovering above their heads dropped to the ground. Mokuba looked up. "Hey bro! Freya was showing me this awesome magic trick! She can make things hover!"

Seto just stared in disbelief. "Freya, I think you have some explaining to do." He said. Freya smiled and turned away. "Yeah, I suppose you're right, kid." She said. That surprised him. "What did you just call me?"

"Kid." She said. "I think it's a good semblance. I'm not saying that you're small. I just think it's easy for me to remember. If you don't like it, I'll work on remembering your name for real."

"N-No, it's fine. But please," he moved to sit down by them. "Tell us what you are."

"What do you mean, kid?"

"I know you're different Freya. The things you keep saying make it sound as though you've spent your life in a prison. You even ate the meatloaf last night and that just isn't done here."

Mokuba looked up at her. "He's right, you know." He said. Freya sighed. "I don't know if you guys can handle the truth. I don't want to spoil your blank tickets for you."

"Blank tickets?" Seto said in confusion. Freya nodded.

"Yes. Unlike me, the both of you were born with blank tickets. They're good for one lifetime and for absolutely anything. If I tell you the truth, they might not be good anymore. You won't get to do whatever you want and be whoever you want to be. Do you see what I'm saying?"

Seto looked to the side and then at his brother who nodded. "I understand. But we still want to know, Freya. What were those things we saw you controlling on the beach? The arms?"

Freya turned melancholy. "I'll never forgive myself if anything should happen to you." She said. She sighed. "This will be a secret between us. The three of us. You are not to tell this to any of the others. Understand?"

The both of them nodded. Freya stood up. "Now, I am a magician, and I need one of you to volunteer to be my assistant."

Mokuba jumped up and waved his arm in the air. "Me! Me! Pick me, Freya!" he cried. Freya smiled and pointed to him. "Stand right here, where I am." She said as she moved away a few feet. "Now, what I'm about to do is similar to what the both of you saw me doing a few minutes ago. Whatever you do, don't be afraid."

A powerful wind ripped past them and Seto's eyes widened as dozens of long, transparent arms appeared from behind Freya and wrapped around his brother, lifting him into the air. He looked nervous at first, but then started to laugh as she swung him a gentle circles like an amusement park ride. All the while, he was passed from one arm to the next in the blink of an eye. Freya stood in the center of them, her flesh arms at her sides as she watched Mokuba fly through the air. Seto stood up, his face contorted with fear. "Freya, what are those things? Why do they have my brother?"

"These things are called vectors." Freya explained. "They're extra arms that I was born with. Normally, you can't see them. I'm advanced, however and can increase the frequency waves in them, allowing humans to see them."

She gently lifted Seto into the air as well, but kept him just a few feet off the ground while she continued to amuse Mokuba. He kept listening as he was swung gently back and forth, still smiling.

"Are you an alien?" he asked. Freya laughed. "No. I was born on earth to normal parents. I am what's called a Diclonius, which I believe is Latin for 'Two-horned-human'. The Diclonius are usually very dangerous to humans for one reason or another. You can recognize them because most of them have bright pink hair and all of them have horns just like mine."

"Do they all have these…vectors?" Seto asked, struggling on the word. Freya nodded. "Yes. Every Diclonius has their own unique number of them and have a range as to how far they can reach. Some are born with small ranges and only a few vectors. Some are born with many vectors and very large ranges. It all depends on the individual."

"What about you?" Mokuba called.

"I have over forty vectors with the ability to generate new ones. I have a range of twenty-three feet." Freya said. "However, I can only release about twenty-some at a time. I'm gradually getting more adept at it as I get older."

She put them both down. Mokuba looked disappointed as she retracted her vectors back into her body. Seto looked up, still serious. "But you haven't explained yet where you come from." He said. At this, Freya grew uncomfortable. Seto wasn't finished. "And if there's others, why haven't we seen them? From what you say, they're easy to recognize."

Freya sighed. "Most Diclonius children born never even make it out of the nursery. We're killed before we have a chance at life."

"What?" the two brothers exclaimed in shock.

"Like I said. We're sometimes dangerous to humans. We're often euthanized and our deaths are attributed to SIDS, or Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. No one knows what causes it and the answer is enough to satisfy grieving parents most of the time."

"How did you escape, then?" Mokuba asked. Freya shrugged. "I don't know why I escaped and so many others didn't. Those of us who aren't killed are taken to a special facility where we're studied."

Freya stopped here. She'd told them more than enough. They didn't need to know that she was the most dangerous Diclonius in the facility, or how she was kept in confinement while she was there. She cleared her throat. "Anyway, that's enough explaining. Remember, this is a secret between us, okay?"

"Right." Both brothers said at the same time. Freya smiled. "Now, what say we go do something? It's going to be a great day out."

Little did they know that it wouldn't stay that way.

A/N: So Freya told them what she was. And now they know about the Diclonius. But they never delved deeper into why Diclonius are dangerous to humans, nor did she explain the extent of her vectors' capabilities. What's going to happen? Stay tuned to find out.


	5. Fight

A/N: Okay, here's the climax of part one

A/N: Okay, here's the climax of part one. I'm sure most of you figured that much out by how this story was going in comparison to the summary. Enjoy. Warning: Graphic violence in this chapter.

**Fight**

A helicopter was quickly making its way over the Atlantic ocean toward a small coastal town. It carried several passengers. A large rifle team with strong armor and reinforced black outfits, their guns poised in their hands. A woman with short brown hair and thin glasses sat beside what looked like a mummy resting on a carrying platform in front of her. The head of the mummy turned. "_So I am permitted to kill anyone who interferes with my dealing with number 32?" _

The woman nodded. "Yes. Johnson radioed that she'd been found by two small boys. I am not happy about it, but you are permitted to kill them. _Kill_ them, number 16, not torture them. Understand?"

Rumi sighed irritably. "_Of course. I hope they scream. It's always more fun that way." _

The woman frowned. This girl had been put through so much misery in her life that she took joy in causing pain to humans. Her father had been a reputed child molester and Rumi had been his favorite subject until her vectors developed. That was all the background information she knew about. She was Dr. Marian Kelso of the San Francisco Diclonius project. Because the Diclonius were turning up all around the world, special facilities had been set up in various locations to deal with them. She always hated being around them. They scared her out of her mind and she was positive that her fate as long as she continued working with them was to have her head ripped off.

"_Are we almost there? I have to go to the bathroom." _Rumi whined.

"When we land, our guards will escort you to the bathroom." Marian said firmly.

_"Blech! I'm not going to pee with a bunch of stupid old guys staring at me. I'd rather hold it." _ Rumi snapped. Marian was tempted to laugh, but Rumi's vectors could still move despite the heavy binding covering the girl's body, so she held it in.

"We're almost there." Marian said. Rumi had been told about the vial of smallpox inside her and that had quieted her almost instantly. She'd been informed of the Diclonius they were hunting. Her name was Freya and she was extremely dangerous. She'd probably kill everyone in the vicinity in order to escape recapture. Rumi was aware of that and she seemed to be bristling with excitement.

"_I've wanted to rip that traitor apart since the first time I saw her. This will be quite interesting." _

Marian sighed and looked out the front. The town looked so quaint. She was almost sorry for number 32.

/ooo/

It was late in the evening and Freya was busy learning how to climb a tree from Seto and Mokuba. Her new friends seemed to quickly forget the new information they'd learned about Freya and she was perfectly content about that.

But it was just about time for dinner when she felt it. That tingling sensation in her brain. She froze in place as she was following her friends into the building. They turned and looked at her in confusion. "What's up, Freya?" Seto asked.

All the color drained from her face, but she forced herself to remain calm. She turned in the direction of the sea. "She's here." She whispered.

"Who's here?" Seto asked. Freya scowled. "So Johnson was right. Number 16 really is coming after me."

"Number 16? What are you talking about?" Mokuba asked. She looked at each of them in turn. "You two, get out of here, go and hide. Another Diclonius is here."

"What? How can you tell?" Seto asked.

"We can sense each other. That's how we find each other. Another Diclonius is here and she's coming for me."

"Is she like you?" Mokuba asked. Freya shook her head. "I doubt it. Very few Diclonius are like me. I need you two to go and hide or you'll get hurt."

"Hurt? How?" Seto exclaimed. Freya seemed very bitter. "Remember when I said that the Diclonius can be very dangerous to humans? Look, just take my word for it and hide yourselves somewhere. You'll be safer."

"Should we warn everyone?" Mokuba asked. Freya shook her head. "No. Leave them to their fate." She said, her eyes narrowing. Mokuba hid behind his brother at her grim words. "What's that mean?" he quivered. But Seto grabbed his arm. "I'll take your word, Freya. But be careful." He said. He dragged his brother off to the playground. He was going to hide them in the bushes beside the fence. That always worked when hiding from the bullies and they could keep an eye on Freya provided she stayed outside.

Freya went to the front gate and put her hand on the stone pillar. There was no point in hiding. Number 16 was different from number 19. Freya's usual method of trying to hide would do no good. It was better to let number 16 find her.

But that didn't mean she'd let number 16 catch her.

/ooo/

The helicopter touched down at the docks, surprising several fishermen who hadn't been warned. As Rumi, dressed in a faded pink skirt and white cardigan was led out, they paused to gape at her strange appearance. Marian immediately noticed them and her eyes widened as Rumi grinned suddenly. "I am warning you now, number 16, kill them and we will disintegrate the vial. Understand?" she snapped.

Rumi pouted. "I can't even have a little practice before I hunt down number 32?" she whined.

"You get plenty of practice contorting our technicians who try to feed you." Marian grumbled. Rumi snickered. Surrounded by the guards, she was led away toward where Johnson had last radioed in. As they proceeded, a man in a brown trench coat and sunglasses ran over to them. "Dr. Kelso! We have just discovered Johnson!" he gasped.

"Good. Where is he?" Marian demanded.

"Er, that's the problem. I believe he was discovered. We found his body in the bay. His neck's been crushed. No other wounds, but he was killed at least a day or so ago. Our specialists are going to start the autopsy as soon as we ship him back."

Marian sighed. "Number 32. She must still be in this area. Have you pinpointed her location and _please_ tell me it's one with few bystanders?"

The man cleared his throat uncomfortably as he read off a sheet of paper. "I have some pretty bad news on that subject." He said lamely. "It seems that the two young boys who discovered number 32 are orphans and brought her to the home they are currently living in. My sources assure me that there are over fifty-seven individuals in residence, including caretakers. Their records show they recently took in a teenage girl with severe malnutrition. I figure that can only be Freya."

"Please, Gregor, call her by her number. These freaks shouldn't have names."

Rumi folded her arms and let out a 'humph!'.

Gregor cleared his throat again. "Yes, Dr. Kelso." He mumbled. "Are you going to go after her?"

"Yes. I have number 16 all ready to go. We'll have number 32 back in confinement in four hours, at most. Standby on the radio for quick transport in case number 16 does any serious damage."

"Roger." Gregor said. He hurried past her and climbed into the chopper. Rumi started to cackle. "Oh boy! If all of these kids come out to see what's happening, I can kill every one of them!"

"No, you can't. Only those who try to stop you. We can always manipulate the minds of the children and adults."

Rumi groaned and folded her arms again. "Rats!"

"Now," Marian snapped. "Start looking for number 32."

Rumi nodded. "I'm on it."

A few seconds passed and she grinned again. Then, without warning, she took off, followed closely by the guards. Marian called ahead to warn local police they'd been in contact with to clear the roads where Rumi was heading.

/ooo/

"You need to come inside, now!" one of the volunteers snapped at Freya as she stood at the gate, staring fearfully at the orange sky.

"No." Freya said determinedly. "I'm staying right here."

"You're being completely paranoid, you know. Nothing is coming."

Freya smirked. "Oh something is coming, all right. And if you don't want to die, you'll go back inside, ma'am."

The volunteer staggered back. "Are you threatening me, young lady?" she stammered.

"No, warning you." Freya corrected. The volunteer scowled. "There's no difference and you have some attitude!"

Freya perked suddenly. Her heart began to race in her chest and her breathing grew rapid. "I can't do this."

She whirled and dashed into the playground as the director came outside to see what was going on. "Maylene, are you all right?" he called to the volunteer. He turned to the street and frowned. "Who's that?" he wondered aloud. "I need my glasses."

He went back inside, leaving Maylene alone to watch the figure coming toward them on the street. Maylene smiled welcomingly. "Hello there, can I help you?" she called. It was a little girl with long pink hair tied back in a ponytail. She had a big grin on her face as she approached and Maylene smiled back. But the smile vanished when she saw the horns. "What the? She has the same horns as Freya. But why—"

With a choked cry, the center of her torso exploded from her body, leaving a gaping hole where her abdomen had been. Maylene blinked twice, shocked. Then, before she could utter another sound, there was a crunching sound and her head was turned completely around, snapping from her body like thread. Her body toppled to the ground, leaving her head suspended at eye level—just as the director reappeared. The instant he saw the floating head of his volunteer, he screamed and ducked back inside.

Rumi cackled excitedly and hurled the head through an open window several meters away. She counted down until the terrified screams could be heard from the center of the street in front of the orphanage. Rumi sighed. "Oh this is fun. I sure missed this in the facility. Now, lets' see if I can't find number 32."

She slowly ambled into the property, not really looking for the Diclonius as she went.

"Oh number 32, where are you?" she chanted. She heard the sound of the guards arriving and finding the body of the volunteer. "Number 16!" Marian shouted. "Was this girl interfering in any way?"

"Oh yes." Rumi said. "She stood in my way. I did what had to be done."

Marian sighed and shook her head in empathy for the dead girl. "Find number 32!" she ordered.

Rumi proceeded into the playground. "I can sense you, number 32! I know you're here and you won't escape me."

"If you show yourself, you'll be taken back, unharmed!" Marian called.

"Whoever said that?" Rumi snapped. "I thought I was allowed to kill her."

"Only if she puts up a fight and that means releasing her vectors." Marian said angrily. "Now stick to your job!"

Rumi grumbled under her breath, but did as she was told. "You know," she said contemplatively. "Killing you might be worth being infected by smallpox."

Marian felt the blood drain from her face, but she remained calm. "Just stick to your job, number 16." She growled.

Nearby in some shrubbery, Seto watched fearfully as the pink-haired girl wandered through the playground. "They're after Freya." He whispered nervously.

"We have to help her." Mokuba said. Seto shook his head. "No, Moki. Freya ordered us to stay put. We have to listen. I think she was right and this girl is dangerous. Did you hear what she said to that lady? She said being infected might be worth killing her. We need to stay low."

Mokuba nodded and continued to shake in fear. "But what if that girl finds us, first?" he murmured.

"Then she'll have to get through me if she wants to kill you, Moki." Seto said encouragingly. "I won't let anything happen to you. I promise."

Rumi grinned slyly. "It appears we're being watched by two little weasels." She announced to Marian. "They're in those bushes. Can I flush 'em out?"

"Number 16, you must stick to your job and find number 32."

"I don't care."

Rumi unleashed her vectors in the direction of the shrubs. She heard the screams and watched as two kids fell out, momentarily stunned. The bigger one stood up quickly, standing in front of the younger one who remained motionless. Rumi vaguely hoped she'd killed him. Her hopes were dashed when she saw him move.

"Number 16! Stop it! We're here for number 32, understand?" Marian screamed. But Rumi seemed deaf to her. She started toward the boys, her vectors flurrying around her in anticipation. "I've waited too long to stop now!" she snapped.

Seto remained in front of his brother, determined to protect him from whatever this girl had in mind.

Rumi had just about gotten within range when she screamed suddenly as she was sent hurtling backwards into the chain link fence twenty feet away. Seto blinked and turned. "Freya!" he yelled. But he paused. There was something different about her. Her eyes were completely dull and had gone a dull ruby color. She seemed limp and completely oblivious to them.

Rumi sat up painfully, rubbing her head and grumbling. "Well, so there you are. Thanks for saving me the trouble of coming to find you."

As Seto watched, the ruby color faded, and Freya's eyes returned to their emerald-violet hue. "Leave them alone, Rumi. They aren't involved in this. It's you and me."

Rumi snorted. "Look at this. The greatest Diclonius since number 35 and here you are, protecting two weak human boys. How pathetic can you possibly get? In any case, I've been given permission to kill you should you fight back. I'd say that that counts as fighting back. But what do I care?"

She vanished suddenly and Freya whipped her head up in time to see her come rocketing down toward her, vectors extended and ready to kill. Freya ducked aside and released ten of her own, grabbing Rumi's vectors and pinning them to the ground. She released five more and grabbed Rumi herself, lifting her into the air to about fifteen feet. Rumi struggled to free her arms from Freya's grip. Suddenly, Freya brought Rumi down forcefully, slamming her hard into the ground. Rumi cried out in pain as she was lifted up again.

"Stop it!"

Freya stopped in the act of dropping Rumi, who had tensed up in preparation for the fall. Both Diclonius looked toward Mokuba. He stood watching them with his hands at his sides. "Stop it, Freya!" he yelled. "Just stop it. I hate this! Stop it!"

Freya blinked and sighed. She gently lowered Rumi to the ground and then retracted her vectors, her head bowed in defeat. Rumi stood motionless and disbelieving. Then, she grinned. "Now I've seen everything." She said.

Freya screamed as Rumi's vectors began to barrage her relentlessly, hurling her back into the building with enormous force. Seto and Mokuba watched in terror as Freya desperately tried to free herself from the attack and was continuously pushed back further into the wall. Finally, she felt a break and threw herself to the side, jumping high into the air and gaining valuable distance. But remembering Mokuba's words, she didn't release her vectors. She just landed several meters away, out of Rumi's range. Rumi snarled in rage. "You aren't making this any fun! Fine then, if you won't fight, maybe your little friends will!"

Freya gasped as Rumi turned toward the brothers. Before she could get there, Seto cried out in pain and fell backwards, clutching the air at his neck and gasping for air. Mokuba screamed. "Seto! Let go of my brother!" he yelled at Rumi. Rumi simply threw him back against the fence where he crumpled to the ground limply.

"M-Mokuba!" Seto gasped, still trying to take a breath. He was starting to go pale from lack of circulation in his neck combined with the lack of air.

"Rumi, stop! I'm your opponent!" Freya yelled, hurrying over. She started to reach for her friend. At that second, Rumi released Seto who immediately fell limp as color gradually returned to his skin. But as Freya reached him, she was pushed back to the side and knocked off balance. As she struggled to get up and reached out toward Rumi, there was a flash of light around her hand and her eyes went wide as her fingers were sliced off at the knuckles. Seto, now sitting up, yelled in horror. Freya pulled her mutilated hand against her chest, whimpering in pain and shock. She grunted in pain when she was thrown back again, the wind knocked from her chest. As she sat up, her right arm supporting her, Rumi started to laugh. "You know, why shouldn't I?"

Another flash like a blade and Freya screamed as her right arm was hurled away from the force of Rumi's vectors. Rumi started to cackle again. "This is so much fun! Now lets' see what I can do to your friend."

Freya gasped. "No!" she screamed, jumping up and running in front of Seto who seemed in shock. As she stopped in front of him and shoved him back, she shrieked again as her left arm was severed and thrown several feet away. Here, she collapsed on one knee, gasping for breath and trying to keep from blacking out. She looked up at Rumi, her eyes glazed with pain and hatred. "That's it." She wheezed. Twenty-seven of her vectors flew out and hurled toward a suddenly frightened Rumi. Before Rumi could react, her left arm was sliced off and she fell to that ground, stunned.

"An arm for an arm." Freya mumbled. She fell forward onto her stomach with a heavy sigh. The pain in her stubs was already beginning to fade from loss of consciousness. Seto jumped up and hurried over to her. "Freya! Freya!" he yelled. Mokuba had run over too after recovering from his run-in with the fence.

"Don't die!" he cried, tears streaming down his face. Freya struggled to stay awake as the guards at the gate rushed over to Rumi. "Look, Kid," she said weakly. "I can't stay with you guys anymore. They're gonna take me back to the facility and I'll probably be euthanized. You understand?"

"I don't know what that means." Seto replied, doing everything in his power to keep from crying. Memories of finding Freya on the beach the day before suddenly began to flash in front of him.

"It means I'll go to sleep and never wake up." Freya said. "Listen to me, kid. You still have that blank ticket I told you about. You and your brother, both. I want you to use it. Use it well. Do whatever you want with your life. Okay? Do you promise me?"

Seto nodded shakily. He was still in shock from what he'd seen happen to her. "I promise." He said.

"Good. Listen, just forget about me. Forget about the Diclonius and forget what you saw today. It'll only slow you down. Do something great. Become someone important for me. But try to forget you ever knew me. My ticket had a preplanned destination and events printed on it, but you've got one that's completely blank. Mokuba does too and it can go for absolutely anything you want. Don't let me down, kid."

"I won't Freya." Seto promised. She shoved them away with her vectors as the guards approached and roughly lifted her onto a stretcher. She was strapped down with heavy straps of leather and thick bandages were wrapped around her eyes once more. A mask similar to her old one was fixated on her face and her stubs were quickly bound by thick gauze. She was lifted up by the guards and carried to the front gate. Marian watched them go and then quickly approached the brothers. "Listen, boys, tell no one about what went on here, today. As far as everyone is concerned, this never happened. Understand? _This never happened._"

Both boys nodded slowly and the woman walked off, following the guards with the stretcher, Freya and Rumi. Several minutes later, they saw a helicopter rising up into the sky and flying off to the west. They watched it until it was out of sight, knowing that was probably the last time they were ever to see their friend again. Mokuba started to cry. Seto put his arm around his shoulders and sighed. He'd do his best to follow Freya's wishes. But he doubted he could completely forget about what he'd seen today.

A/N: End of part one. Keep reading to find out what happens.


	6. Arrival

A/N: Here's part two of my story

A/N: Here's part two of my story. I think it takes an interesting turn here. Just read on and find out.

**Part Two: New Student**

Kaiba watched in boredom as Yugi worked on teaching Joey some advanced dueling moves. It was always the same. He faced the front of the classroom, waiting impatiently for class to finally start. At last, the teacher arrived and set his workbooks down on the desk. "Attention class. Today is a very big day. We have a new student transferring in from the next region. Please come in, now."

"Why?" the class heard from outside the door. The teacher blinked. "Uh, because you have to." He said.

"I don't see the point. This school is just as lame as the other school."

"At least come in and see." He said, trying to stay composed.

The new student entered quickly. The entire class stared.

She wore the typical school uniform, but her hair was piled up beneath a long rainbow-colored snowcap with a fluffy pompom dangling at the end. She wore a thick orange scarf wrapped tightly around her neck. Strands of ebony hair hung wispily from beneath it. She wore glasses over swamp-green eyes and she eyed each student with a scowl, crossing her arms moodily.

"Class, this is Toshiko Suzumaki. Toshiko, please tell the class a little about yourself."

"I'm a girl. Don't mess with me or you'll be sorry."

"Uhh…." The teacher said in confusion. "Is…will that be all?"

"Yup." Toshiko muttered.

"Okay, why don't you sit down?"

"Whatever." Toshiko muttered. The class had begun to whisper excitedly and Kaiba managed to pick up on some of it.

"Toshiko Suzumaki? That's the same name as the brand new pop star who's performing at the band shell tonight! Think it's her?"

"Doubt it. Toshiko Suzumaki is a babe, and this girl's probably a negative three on the babe chart."

"That could be a disguise, you know." Another guy said. Kaiba frowned and watched the new girl sit down and shove her books to the side. There was something weird about her. He couldn't quite place it.

After class was over, the same kids who discussed the new girl got up and went over to her desk. "Hey, Toshiko." One of them said.

"Yeah?" she asked. She'd acquired a bag of raisins from her book bag and popped a few in her mouth as she glared at them. "What do you want?"

"Are you going to be performing at the band shell tonight?" the second kid asked, barely concealing his excitement. Toshiko shrugged. "How'd you know?" she drawled. "Yeah, I'll be performing there. Why? Are you after backstage passes?"

All three boys visibly froze. "Yeah!" they all exclaimed. Toshiko stood up with a smile. "Well, I hate to say it, but I don't do favors for drooling, slack-jawed nitwits like you."

She dumped the bag of raisins on their heads, grabbed her bag and walked out in a huff.

Kaiba heard Yugi and his friends start talking about it:

"What a weirdo." Tristan said. "She dresses like my aunt Margaret."

"So? It's just a fashion sense. Girls tend to have a stronger fashion sense than boys, you know." Tea said.

"Humph." Tristan muttered.

"It's cool that she's that new pop star that recently appeared." Yugi remarked. "Maybe we should check out the show. It might be fun."

"Tickets cost a lot, Yugi." Joey said.

"My grandpa told me a loophole. He said you can watch the show from the gates as long as you don't go in any further."

"Well then, it's settled. Lets' go." Tea said.

Kaiba hummed. This happened a lot. Some wannabe pop singer would appear in public at the band shell and proceed to humiliate themselves by singing badly in front of thousands of people. Once, the classic tomato scheme had been used against a particularly bad one. He had to admit, he was curious as to whether Toshiko Suzumaki was as sensational as those boys had made her out to be.

/ooo/

Toshiko wandered through the streets toward her apartment by the beach. She was careful to make sure no one was following her as she made her way home. It was crucial that she kept her secret. No good could come from its discovery. She smirked to herself as she recalled her meeting with her classmates.

"What a bunch of idiots. I can't stand them already. However, if things go exactly as I plan, I won't have to for much longer."

She hummed a familiar song to herself as she continued.

It was almost time.

/ooo/

Joey was walking home in a daze. He was bushed. He had a lot on his mind. The Duelist Kingdom tournament was starting soon and he needed to be ready. He sighed.

"Man, this is gonna be tough. My deck's still needing work and I can't even think straight."

He looked up suddenly as he passed a bagel shop. He stopped.

"Hey, it's Toshiko." He said.

Toshiko stood at the counter haggling with the clerk over the outrageous prices of the bagels sold there. Joey shook his head. He never bought anything there because it was so expensive. Apparently, Toshiko was just discovering that.

"You can't tell me that one cinnamon bagel costs this much, pal! This is a roadside bakery, not Queen Victoria's personal pastry service. This is outrageous!" Toshiko raged.

"Look, lady, you don't like it, you can buy a bagel someplace else! We gotta make a living too, you know!" the manager yelled over the head of his disgruntled sales clerk.

"Maybe I will. I'm a fast learner and a huge fan of cinnamon bagels. By losing me, you're losing some of your best possible sales! I can be the best bargain hunter in the world when I want to be! And all I see here is a cheap pastry stand with a manager straight out of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves!"

She whipped the bagel at him with such force it knocked him backwards. "That's another thing!" she yelled. "A _fresh_ bagel wouldn't knock you over! Good day, you bandit."

She stomped off. Joey by this time, was laughing so hard he'd doubled over. He'd seen that manager in action against angry customers all the time, and Toshiko was the first person ever to stand up to him for his lousy service.

He hurried after her. "Hey! Toshiko! Wait up!"

She turned. "Oh, it's you." She grumbled. "You're that crazy kid from Algebra, aren't you?"

"Uh…." Joey faltered. "Yeah, I guess. I saw what you did at that bagel shop. That was pretty cool. That guy's known for his lame service and no one ever has enough guts to put him down like that, much less throw one of those bagels at him."

Toshiko let out a 'humph'. "It's his own problem. But nosy oddballs like you should mind their own business. Leave me alone."

She whirled and stalked off. Joey stood there, stunned. "What'd I do?" he wondered aloud.

He decided to follow her and see if he could find out why she was so angry. It couldn't be just because of the bagel stand.

He kept a good distance back, not letting her out of his sight. It was Sunday, so he didn't need to be at school. She bought a newspaper and read it while she walked. Eventually, she found another pastry shop that sold good bagels at affordable prices. He noticed that she bought three of them and had two put into the bag that was taped shut to keep the warmth in. She ate the other one at a table outside the store. Joey noticed that people gave her continuously funny looks at her mismatched outfit. The hat, the glasses and the scarf were odd enough. But instead of the usual school uniform, now, she wore a baggy black sweatshirt and a faded purple skirt with a ragged pair of knee socks, also mismatched.

She remained at the table long after she finished the bagel and read the paper without looking up once. Joey figured he could have walked up behind her and she wouldn't have noticed.

Finally, she set the paper down, ripped out the comics, folded them and stuffed them into her pocket. She left the rest of the paper at the table and walked off. Joey frowned and went over to the table. He looked at the articles she'd been reading.

"Hey." He muttered. He sat down and read through it:

**MASS MURDERS APPEARING THROUGHOUT NATION**

**Maryann Parks, JV Writer**

**As the number of dead continues to rise, panic begins to grip America, as well as several other countries around the world. Australia, Tibet, Japan, and Iran are only a few who have reported grisly murders in the past three weeks. These murders all share the same details; the victims are found decapitated and seem to be torn or cut apart in almost every case. A few have been reported as unidentifiable, as the killer had taken the heads with him. There is no traceable pattern in the victims, more like they were selected completely at random. There also seems to be an equal mix of men, women and even children. There is no one clear sex of victims.**

**"I didn't see anything, but I heard the screams of the children in my neighbor's house. I just assumed that they were watching one of them horror movies again. That was their tradition, you know. 'Scary Friday' they called it." Said Ezra Shanks, neighbor to recent victims. **

The FBI and task force of America have had no new leads, but suspicion is mounting on several criminals of the past who may be resurfacing. More on page eight.

Joey put the paper down in shock. Why hadn't he heard about this?

"I have got to read the paper more often, this is serious. I wonder if Yugi knows about this."

He got up, taking the paper with him. He couldn't help but wonder why Toshiko had been reading this. He carried the paper with him, eyes faraway as he thought. He didn't notice where he was going until he walked into someone.

"Why don't you watch where you're going, Wheeler!?"

"Kaiba?" Joey said in surprise. Kaiba was glaring at him as he crossed his arms angrily. "Since when do monkeys think so thoroughly?" he commented in reference to Joey's state of detachment.

"I'm no monkey, Kaiba!" Joey yelled. "I was thinking. I saw Toshiko reading something in the paper."

"Oh really." Kaiba drawled, uninterested. Joey shoved the paper in his hands. Kaiba scowled at the headlines and read through the article. Gradually, his face changed to that of concern. "She was reading this?" he said, handing the paper back.

"Yeah. I was following her to see why she was angry. She bought some bagels and this paper and read this. Sounds pretty creepy."

Kaiba smirked. "Don't worry, I doubt that monkeys are on the killer's schedule." He said.

"I'M NOT A MONKEY!!" Joey bellowed, but Kaiba was already walking away. Joey glared at him. "I really hate that guy." He growled.

/ooo/

Kaiba shook his head in amusement. Wheeler was so easy to irritate. But he had to admit, he was curious about that article Toshiko had been reading. Why was it so familiar to him? The way that the victims were killed seemed to bring something back. But what? He couldn't figure it out.

He looked up and frowned.

It was Toshiko. She was looking at a poster on the wall and from this distance, he could see that it was a poster advertising her concert later. He carefully approached. "You're Toshiko, right?" he said. She looked over at him. She squinted and removed her glasses. "Yeah? What do you want?"

"I heard in class you're some new pop star performing at the band shell tonight."

"I'm not giving away tickets."

"I'm not interested."

Here, her eyes widened as she cleaned her glasses on her sweatshirt. "Really? Now I've heard everything. People have been asking me all day for tickets to my show. And I've been telling them all day to just get lost."

"Why?" he asked. She smirked. "Because it's a charity benefit." She replied. This surprised him. "A charity benefit?"

"Yup. Cost to get in is one donation over five dollars. All the money goes to the local animal shelters around here. I'm thinking of adopting a cat."

She turned back to him. "What's your name?"

"Why do you care?" he snapped.

"Because you're the only kid in school not to pester me about tickets. If you want to come to the concert, I can tell the gate people to let you in for free."

"I'm not interested in the concert." He replied. She shrugged. "Whatever. It's your loss. I sing material from other songwriters with their permission. Kind of like what they do on American Idol." She explained.

"I don't watch it."

"Boy, you are a sad case. Bagel?" she said, holding up the bag. He shook his head. "No thanks." He said. This girl was so weird. And yet, there was something about her that was so different, but he couldn't explain it.

"Well, I'd better get home. Kayley's going to want her bagel, soon."

"Who's Kayley?" Kaiba asked. She turned and with the most serious of faces, said gravely, "My daughter."

With that, she turned and headed off.

A/N: Oh, so Toshiko has a daughter, eh? Interesting. But remember, things aren't always what they seem and maybe this is one of them. And what will her concert be like? Just read on to find out! Oh, and about Of Life and Arrangements, I got my laptop back, but the files have been mixed around and I can't seem to find it. More info on it with the next chapter.


	7. Performance

A/N: Here's the next chapter

**A/N: **Here's the next chapter. I found the 'Arrangements' files. They're on a DVD my dad sent back with the laptop. The problem is figuring out which DVD has which files. I'll let you know as soon as I do. Important Info on 'Of Life and Arrangements' at the end of this chapter.

**Performance**

The crowd at the band shell was enormous. If people had no money to give for donations, they were sitting on the high stone wall up above the seats facing the band shell far below. Yugi and his friends had heard about the donation rule and grabbed some seats in the back out of the way. They could see the band shell perfectly from where they were.

"So that's why she wasn't giving away tickets." Tristan remarked. "It's a charity event."

"That's great!" Tea said. "I heard someone say that all the money is going to the local animal shelters."

"That's really nice." Yugi said. "But I still wonder what the concert is going to be like."

Outside the gate, it was beginning to quiet down. Among the darkened figures standing outside it, Kaiba was among them, though slightly aloof from the rest. He kept a careful eye on the band shell. There was something about Toshiko that brought back some weird memories. Memories that he'd deemed as nightmares he'd been having since he was a kid. Nightmares of a horrible, bloody battle in which he was somehow involved. The phrase that kept coming to mind was 'Blank Ticket', whatever that meant. He wanted to see if maybe watching the concert would give him a little more insight into these weird dreams.

Suddenly, the lights dimmed the then refocused dramatically on center stage where in all the commotion, a lone figure stood with her back to them. Kaiba's eyes widened. It couldn't be.

Toshiko spun around. She looked different. Her hair was down and quite long. It was pure, obsidian black and shone in the spotlight. She wore a French barrette on her head with strands of pink and white ribbons streaming off the ends. To match the silver barrette, she wore a short silver skirt and black sleeveless top. Completing the look was a strand of silver chain hanging around her neck. Her microphone attached to her ear and she raised her arm. "Hey everyone!" she yelled. "Are you all ready to rock?"

There was an outburst of applause and excitement as everyone replied at once. Toshiko nodded. "Great! Then lets' get started. You may all recognize the songs I do."

As the song started up, Kaiba shook his head in disbelief. It couldn't be. It was just impossible.

Toshiko, no longer hidden underneath those ridiculous clothes she always wore, resembled someone from his dreams, almost exactly. But there were a few things missing. The girl in the nightmares had two little horns on top of her head, whereas Toshiko had none. But even if she did, the barrette would hide them. But there was no way Toshiko could be the girl, because Kaiba always woke up when the crucial battle scene struck; the girl somehow had both of her arms torn off and she inevitably bled to death in front of him. Toshiko only looked like the girl. The only similarity was the hair length, which was unusually long. And while the girl's eyes were a shade of emerald and violet mixed, Toshiko's were an ugly shade of swamp green.

Kaiba shook his head and frowned. "What am I thinking? Those are nightmares, nothing more." He snapped.

Toshiko started up the concert as some high-beat material started up.

"That's Cascada's music!" he heard someone yell.

Close my eyes, I try to hide

_I'm listening to my voice inside_

_Why don't you tell me right or wrong_

_I need to know where I belong_

_For all the days I ran away_

_I never dare to ask me who I could be_

_Who can bring back the love that's inside me!_

_Could it be you, _

_Or do I lose my way_

_I'm here but colorblind_

_Could it be you, _

_Or do I break away_

_So leave the past behind_

_I only want to feel the sunlight stop the fight and see it in your eyes,_

_Wish I knew what I should do_

_Could it be you!_

_Too many things said and done_

_Sure if you could be the opne_

_To dry the tears I left behind_

_To chase the demons off my mind_

_I see your face_

_Touch your skin, _

_Is this a fight_

_We both can't win_

_Sometimes the truth is miles apart, _

_But it's hard to break your heart!_

_Could it be you_

_Or do I lose my way_

_I'm here but colorbline_

_Could it be you_

_Or do I break away_

_So leave the past behind_

_Feel the sunlight stop the fight and see it in your eyes_

_Wish I just knew what I should do_

_Could it be you_

_Somebody tell me if it's true, I don't have a clue_

_Could it be you?_

By now, the crowd was loving her. It was true. Toshiko Suzumaki was a genuine pop star. But Kaiba was still edgy, even as he wandered away from the band shell. There had to be some explanation. Toshiko was exactly like the girl from his nightmares. Of course, he hadn't told anybody about them. He was actually ashamed to admit that they scared him just a little bit. It was the same thing, night after night recently. A horrible battle, two girls, both with horns, as crazy as that sounded, one of the girls is nearly torn to pieces by something. He never knew what, because the minute her arms were destroyed, he always bolted awake in a cold sweat. It was driving him insane.

Also, the girl in his dreams seemed so familiar. He was so sure that he knew her name, but he couldn't place it.

He sighed wearily.

/ooo/

The next day at school, Toshiko showed up in the exact same outfit as the day before when she first arrived in the classroom. She took one look at Kaiba and scowled. "I didn't see you at the concert." She said, making her way over.

"I told you, I wasn't interested." He growled.

"Doesn't matter. That was a charity benefit. The people at the gates told me they let a bunch of gatecrashers in without so much as a punch. You could have gotten in just as easily."

Kaiba just hummed and turned away. Toshiko shook her head and sat back down.

"All right, class, settle down." The teacher said as he came in. "I understand all of you are still excited over Miss. Suzumaki's performance last night. But now, we have a very important visitor I wish for you to listen to. Please welcome Lieutenant Frederick Gates of the Domino task force."

A tall and very serious man entered the classroom. "Good day, students." He said. "I appreciate if you'd listen to me. This is very crucial information concerning an escaped convict we've been tracking for a few years now. A promising lead has led us to this region. I am about to show you a picture of the convict. If any of you have seen this person, please don't hesitate to tell me."

He lifted up a photo.

Kaiba felt for an instant, his heart stop in terror. _It can't be!_

The picture showed a girl in her teens or early twenties. She had pure black hair that seemed to reach far past her collarbone where the picture stopped. Only one eye was visible through her thick hair covering them, and it was a brilliant shade of red with a hint of emerald. Her face was terrifying, almost like her soul had been eaten by pure evil itself. But the most prominent aspect were the little cat-ear-like horns protruding from her head.

"Woah, that can't be real! The convict's a girl?" some kid asked.

"What'd she do, officer?" another boy asked.

"She's wanted for the brutal murders of dozens of people around this and several other regions throughout the span of three years."

Here, the class started muttering and Kaiba immediately was drawn back to the article Wheeler had forced him to read. It couldn't be. That was…was….

_Freya_

He stopped. From out of nowhere, that name had appeared in his mind. He shook his head.

"What's her name?" he heard another kid ask.

"Her official title is number 32. But her given name is Freya. If any of you have seen her, please contact us. Number 32 is extremely dangerous and will not likely spare any informants, so any information will be kept strictly confidential, known only to a few select people. It is absolutely crucial that we find her."

For the first time, Kaiba felt on the verge of panic. What the heck was happening? How had he known that girl's name before the officer had said it?

"I am going to leave a special number with your teacher and you may call at any time with information regarding number 32. Thank you for your time." He said with a nod of his head. He turned and walked out.

Their teacher cleared his throat. "Well, now that that is settled, lets' start today's lesson, shall we?"

No one noticed a girl in the back of the room look down at her hands in discomfort.

/ooo/

School ended and Kaiba paused outside to think. Okay, he thought. Somehow, I knew that girl's name before the officer had said it. That doesn't necessarily mean I'm crazy. It could just mean….

He shook his head. "This is insane." He grumbled. He turned and stalked off, mumbling to himself.

As the school emptied out, one girl emerged unnoticed. Taking glances around her to be safe, she carefully made her way around the school to a secluded patch of brush and knelt down. She pulled out a phone and shakily lifted it to her ear after dialing.

"H-Hello?" she whispered. "My name is Emiko Sakurai. I-I've seen n-number 32."

/ooo/

Toshiko sighed as she made her way home. "I wonder what I should fix tonight. I won't be hungry, but Kayley will for sure. Maybe I should pick something up. No, I did that yesterday."

She shook her head absently and played with the pompom on her hat. "It's gonna be awfully hot when summer gets here." She sighed.

She stopped suddenly. Her eyes gradually grew wider and wider. She swallowed nervously. "I have a bad feeling about this." She whispered. "I'd better get home."

She broke into a sprint for the rest of the distance and didn't stop until she was safely in the house.

A/N: 'Of Life and Arrangements' got deleted while the computer was being fixed. However, there is extremely good news here and no, it's not 'I saved a bunch of money on car insurance by switching to Geico'. It's that half the story remained in backup without me knowing about it. It'll take some more time for a decent update since I have no idea where I am in that story anymore. I'll have to rewrite what's missing. Please be patient with me. I think you'll be happier with the way it will turn out in the future.


	8. Repeat

A/N: This isn't the chapter where you find out where number 32 is

A/N: This isn't the chapter where you find out where number 32 is. The Duelist's Heiress was excited because Freya was alive. So she's around there somewhere. The question is, where?

**Repeat**

Toshiko trudged down the steps of her apartment after saying goodbye to Kayley for the day. She turned and hurried down the street toward the school, a little more anxious to get there than she would normally be. She felt something nagging her at the back of her mind. But she didn't want to dwell on it. She had bigger problems.

/ooo/

The large room was completely dark and only the slight metallic rattling of chains could be heard in the eerie stillness. With a sudden intensity, powerful lights invaded the quiet darkness and the creature at the far end of the room whined in pain. "It's too bright."

She looked up. "Oh, it's time again."

She struggled hard in the chains. "What do you creeps want? Tell me or I'll rip your freaking heads off! Hear me?"

Through the glass window, all she said sounded like muffled gibberish without the speakers turned on. The two technicians and a woman stood there staring out at her as she flailed about.

"We're going to have to mend those brackets." One of them said in reference to the chains. "She's torn at them so much with her arms and vectors over the past few months, she's just about ripped them off the wall."

"She's getting stronger." The woman said. "Those prosthetic arms are getting better and better as they lose more of them in battle."

One of the men sighed. "Yes, but three years after her battle with Freya haven't done her much good. What with the chip on her shoulder and her rage against us, it only adds to her vendetta against Freya."

"I told you and told you, never call her by that so-called given name!" the woman snapped.

"But Dr. Kelso—"

"No 'buts', Lestor. I've told you time and time again, these freaks don't deserve to have names. They murder senselessly and couldn't even care less for their own species. They're 'Devil's Spawn' in my opinion."

Lestor cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Well, Dr. Kelso, that's just it. It's _your_ opinion. I don't happen to believe that and I choose to call them by the names given them by their human parents."

Marian huffed and whirled, stalking to the door and throwing it open. "I'm going to negotiate with number 16. Make sure you reactivate the detonator for the glass vial should she be uncooperative."

Marian marched into the holding cell for number 16. The girl growled and flailed in her chains angrily. "I'll tear your head in half!" she screamed. Marian shuddered. "Ugh, you mutant monsters always give me the creeps with those disgusting horns of yours. You may look human, but you're the farthest from us as genetically possible."

Rumi smirked. "You're just afraid of me. All of you are. I only respect one person and that's number 32. That's why I want to kill her. No, make her suffer like I did when she ripped my arm off."

Marian scoffed. "You have to be kidding. You ripped both of her arms off, as well as caused several internal injuries when she refused to fight you for the sake of those two boys."

"_It's been eight years!!_" Rumi shrieked, her cries resonating throughout the chamber. "I want my revenge, _now!_"

"How do you know number 32 didn't escape—_again_—just to get revenge against you, number 16?"

"What? Freya escaped again?" Rumi exclaimed. Marian was bristling with fury. "I don't ever want to hear you call her by a name, again. You freaks don't deserve names. You deserve numbers."

Rumi sighed. "I suppose you want me to catch her." She grumbled.

"Yes. And if you refuse to cooperate—"

"I know, I know." Rumi cut her off. "You'll detonate the big scary vial of smallpox in my body and kill me slowly. I get it. Just get these freaking chains off me."

"No. Emery tried to be civil with you eight years ago when number 32 escaped the first time. This time, we're using force. You will be knocked out and secured on a transport in the helicopter waiting outside. Since you are one of the Diclonii who have not adapted to pain as some of the others, we will be forced to injure you so your vectors won't be in use. You will stay in a constant state of pain until we release you to find number 32—again."

Rumi was terrified. "No! No, I can behave! I did the last time you took me to find her, please!"

"Stop your begging at once, number 16. You mutants are so arrogant. You cause humans pain without a thought. One little injury shouldn't be a problem to you."

She stalked out, leaving Rumi to wallow in her misery. She closed her eyes. She didn't want to cause pain to anything, even humans. Her instinct told her to hate them, but it was memories of her father that forced her to kill them. She shook her head angrily and freed the tears welling up in her eyes. The sight of any human, especially males, reminded her of her bastard father.

"I was his favorite little 'toy' until Lillian showed up." She mumbled. "Why'd he have to kill her? Why? Why?"

She started to sob uncontrollably. The remaining technician assigned to her watched sadly. Lestor sighed. He knew Rumi's whole sad story, beginning to end. She'd been born an accident into a world of drugs and misery. Her mother left her in the care of her father. From the day she could walk, she'd been subject to violent acts of rape and emotional abuse. Her horns were an everlasting insult and well for horrible comments. As far as Lestor knew, based on what Rumi had said herself, Lillian was her stepmother and 'guardian angel'. But when Rumi's father became angry with Lillian for protecting Rumi, he killed her in front of the girl's eyes. That was the same day her vectors became fully developed. The day she killed her father and the day she learned how to torment and enjoy it.

He stood up and leaned over the microphone. "Rumi?" he called. She looked up and sighed. "What is it?" she muttered.

"Are you feeling all right?"

"Um-hmm." She replied nonchalantly. Lestor hummed. "Rumi, Dr. Kelso doesn't…hate you, you know." He said. Rumi snorted. "Yes she does. She hates all Diclonii."

Lestor wasn't sure what to tell her. He knew what she was saying was true. He looked out at Rumi again. "Rumi, do you want me to escort you to the city?"

Rumi looked up and for the first time, he saw a child-like hope in her ruby eyes. She opened her mouth to reply and then bit down on her lip. "No." she finally said. "I don't. I hate you. I hate all of you."

Lestor leaned his head on his hand. Working with Rumi every day, seeing her go through all of those inhumane experiments and torture, tests on her vectors and whatnot, practically broke his heart. He couldn't watch any of it, but her screams always reached him and somehow, they were worse than watching. He longed for Rumi to have been his daughter, like his own three. He could have had those horns amputated at birth. It was now known that the horns controlled the vectors and without them, the vectors would become permanently dormant. It had only been tried on one other Diclonius and she'd lived for three hours afterward. But it had worked. Resulting complications from the surgery had caused her to die after the amputation. But except for the pinkish-red hair and eyes, she looked like any normal little girl without the horns.

Lestor got up and took another look at Rumi. "I'll get some warm clothes for you." He said. Rumi nodded. "Thank you." She whispered, just barely audible over the speakers. This startled Lestor a bit. Where did she learn that from? He shook his head and hurried out.

Rumi looked up at the ceiling. "Freya. I'll find you. But please, don't let me kill you…" She whispered. "…Sister."

/ooo/

Rumi could feel herself being loaded onto the helicopter for transport back to the city where she'd last seen Freya eight years ago.

"I'm going to give you a shot of neurotoxin." She heard Dr. Kelso say firmly. "This will keep you from releasing your vectors before we get to Domino. Do you understand?"

Rumi nodded stiffly through the heavy wrapping covering her body. She felt the needle pierce her skin and flinched at Dr. Kelso's cold touch. "You'll be given a mild antidote when we arrive. I don't want any pain interfering with your capture of number 32."

Rumi sighed inwardly. She quietly hoped that maybe, Freya would kill her. Frankly, she was getting so tired. But if she left herself be killed, then…she shook her head lightly. She didn't want to think about it.

The blades started up and the chopper lifted into the air, turning at a sharp angle toward the sea.

/ooo/

The final bell rang at the school and Toshiko could be seen leaning heavily against the building, her books enveloped in her arms and her head tilted lazily out toward the sky. Joey and Tristan came out of the building, staring. She blinked and glared at them. "What? Can't a girl daydream now and again?" she snapped. They both flinched at her voice. Tea snickered as she came out with Yugi. "Toshiko, you're way to snippy today." She said.

"I'm sorry. I've got a big deadline for a new concert date. Unfortunately, this one can't be a charity benefit. I have to charge something, or my manager in New York will flip."

"Your manager's in New York?" Joey said. "I thought they hung around stars like flies to rotting cheese."

"I told him to either manage me from afar, or I'd waste my own talent. He's after the money." Toshiko said with a shrug. She followed her friends out of the building. Almost all of the students were gathered in the courtyard chatting. It was already Friday.

Yugi frowned and paused.

"What's up, Yugi?" Tristan asked. Yugi hummed. "I'm a little concerned about Kaiba." He said gravely. Joey rolled his eyes. "Typical Yugi to worry about his enemy."

"Well, he has been acting kind of funny. Did you see his face when that officer talked to us? When he saw that picture, he looked like he'd seen a ghost or worse." Tea said.

"Heh." Joey said, stretching. "The guy's been creeping me out for ages."

"Gee, and all this time, I thought you were good buddies." Toshiko sneered.

"Fat chance." Joey snapped. Toshiko shook her head.

As they neared the center of the courtyard, a large crowd started to gather and someone was screaming.

"I hope nothing's wrong over there." Yugi remarked.

"Lets' go see." Tristan said.

As they got nearer, they could see that several police cars had pulled up outside the gate, blocking the students' exit. Dozens of heavily armored men rushed in, aiming machine guns at the terrified students. Tea covered her mouth to stifle a gasp. Joey and Tristan could only stare and Yugi looked stricken. Toshiko turned grim and stared.

Back a ways, Kaiba had come out of the building, looked up and saw the commotion. His eyes widened. "What on earth?"

"Attention!" a voice on a megaphone yelled. "This is the Domino police and special assault team! I want all of you to back up slowly. Any funny stuff, and we won't hesitate to shoot."

Murmurs started up amongst the frightened students and one brave soul called out, "We know our right! What's the reason for this?" he demanded.

"We received an anonymous tip that number 32 has been seen in this school." The officer yelled through the megaphone. At this, screams started to resound throughout the area. Apparently, other classrooms had heard of this deadly murderer.

"No way!" Joey exclaimed. "This is bad. No wonder the special assault team's here!"

"But I haven't seen anyone resembling that murderer's appearance." Tea said. "They must have made a mistake."

"Stop that chattering at once!" the officer yelled. He'd put down the megaphone. All the students packed in tightly as though to protect one another. The men in black holding the machine guns didn't lower their focus. The officer cleared his throat. "I have brought with me a specialist who will determine whether number 32 is here or not. Do not make any sudden movements. I cannot be responsible, otherwise." He said grimly. Tea, Yugi, Tristan and Joey, closest to the front, glanced at each other nervously.

Kaiba snuck around to the side, also near the front of the group on the far end. There was something very familiar about this. "But who made the call?" he wondered.

A slight sniffling sound behind him made him turn. There was a girl standing there with her hand over her nose and mouth, tears pouring from her eyes as she watched the assault team. "Oh, I didn't know they'd go this far." She whispered. Kaiba whirled and glared at her. "Emiko Sakurai." He growled. She squeaked and jumped. "W-What?" she stammered.

"You made that call, didn't you?" he snapped. She swallowed a few times and then nodded furiously. "I couldn't help it! I know I saw number 32 here and I was so scared! Number 32 killed my neighbors! It was in the paper. My dad gave a comment about them."

Kaiba's eyes narrowed. Ezra Shanks. It must have been an identity change for his sake. It had to have been Haruno Sakurai.

He turned back and drew a quick breath when a woman leading a girl, eyes heavily bandaged and a mask over her face. For an instant, he saw a similar mask, lying in a pile of sand. He shook his head. What was going on? He was beginning to dream, even during the day, now.

As they watched, the woman removed the girl's bandages and mask, whispered something in her ear and stepped back quickly. She had long pink hair in a thick ponytail with little curly wisps hanging around her face. As she looked up at the students, she grinned.

"I want number 32 to step forward! I can sense you! Step forward, now!"

The entire student body remained still. The girl had little horns on her head, kind of like ears. Again, Kaiba felt himself stricken with another dream. A girl standing with her back to him, little horns on her head.

"My name is Rumi!" the girl called out. "I repeat, number 32, come forward, now!"

Suddenly, the students began to scream as someone began to push their way forward, toward Rumi.

A/N: Yes, yes, cliffie. I know. Please don't throw anything at me. But who's coming forward? At this point, I doubt I know. I have multiple personalities, you know. Well…no I don't. But anyway, the Arrangement files have not been found yet. They're lost in a mess of DVD's my dad sent me with the laptop and I have to sort through them. Some of them don't work on my computer for some strange reason, but I'll let you all know when I find them. Please, please, PLEASE don't give up on me.


	9. Revelation

A/N: I'm still looking for the files

A/N: I'm still looking for the files. I have a feeling I'll find them today. At least, I hope I do. Anyway, read on. Everything is made clear today!!

**Revelation**

Rumi grinned as she saw someone coming.

Kaiba, Yugi and his friends all gaped.

"No way!" Tristan exclaimed at the same time as Joey. Boys began to mutter and the girls just stared. Rumi placed her hands at her hips. "So you finally decide to face me, again, eh? Very courageous. But this time will be quite different."

Toshiko slowly made her way out of the crowd, her head bowed and her arms limp at her sides. She could feel the hard stares from the others at her back. But now, she just didn't care. "I knew you were coming, Rumi. It's been awhile." She said quietly, but loud enough for the others to hear her. She stopped halfway between the students and Rumi. Rumi snorted. "What the heck are you doing wearing those stupid things for? Are you trying to hide them? Well it's no use, you can't fool anyone, anymore. Take 'em off already!" she snapped.

Toshiko sighed and glanced back at the others. "Yugi, Tea and everyone, please forgive me." She said. She turned back and reached back to remove the scarf. She untied it and threw it to the ground. Then, the glasses went and finally, she reached up for the hat.

Kaiba felt a pang of panic hit him. A strange apprehension of what was to follow.

Toshiko removed the hat and flung it away from her. The entire student body gasped in horror at the little horns, identical to Rumi's. Kaiba remained motionless, paralyzed as the dreams flooded his vision and he quickly realized that they weren't dreams.

They were…memories.

"Good to see you, Freya." Rumi taunted. Several girls started screaming and Rumi scowled. "Shut up! I'm talking, here!"

They instantly quieted. Rumi nodded and turned back to Freya. "Like you said, it's been awhile. Heard you were going under the name of Toshiko Suzumaki. I'm surprised no one found after three years."

"I'm not that easy to manipulate." Freya growled. "Humans are easy to fool."

"I heard about your little killing sprees." Rumi said confidently. Freya didn't move. "I kill when I have to. Nothing more." She said. "Look, Rumi. Why did you come after me again? I thought we settled this after you defeated me."

"I thought we did too. But we both lost pieces of ourselves, that day. Well, some more so than others."

She released five vectors and knocked Freya off balance, ripping off her arm—it was a prosthetic.

Kaiba yelled. It couldn't be. He glowered down at the arm that had fallen near him. Freya sighed in irritation, ignoring the screams of the students as she walked over and bent to pick up her arm. She glanced up at Kaiba. "What are you looking at?" she grumbled. A strange look came into her eyes, but it was gone instantly. Kaiba was also shocked to see her eyes. They were a brilliant red with a hint of emerald.

_Emerald. Freya's eyes_

He shook his head and backed away from her. Apparently, she'd been wearing contacts. She straightened up. Instantly, dozens of transparent hands flew out from behind her. Kaiba just stared, once again. He could see them and judging from how panicked everyone was, they could see them too.

"I…remember…." He muttered to himself. He shut his eyes. The familiar dream came back; the girl with her arms torn off, he was running to her. She looked at him and said something, but he couldn't understand her. Her whole face was dark and her features unintelligible.

"It…can't…be you." He murmured as she turned away and reattached her arm with a small _clank_! She faced Rumi, her strange hands still floating in the air, poised and ready. Rumi cackled. "So you're wanting a fight? Sure. I'm up for it. You already lost both arms. Why don't we make it both legs this time? Or both eyes?"

In a flash, Rumi disappeared and Freya looked up in time to see her come rocketing down toward her. But this time, she was ready. She ducked to the side, releasing her own vectors toward Rumi and grabbing her by the arms. She gripped Rumi's left arm and tugged. Rumi grunted in frustration as the prosthetic popped out and was hurled away. Then, she started to lift her up higher before bringing her down hard on the ground. Rumi hissed in pain and opened one eye. "Do you think this actually hurts me? You're more stupid than I thought!"

She screamed as Freya's vectors tightened around her and there was a sharp snap. Rumi screamed out loud and glared at Freya. "This doesn't hurt! I'll kill you!" she screeched. Freya hurled her into the stone wall surrounding the school. Rumi hit so hard, she cracked the structure. She lay there, stunned. Freya started over. "Now we'll finish this." She said.

"Stop it, you freak!" someone yelled. Freya turned to see who it was. A fuzzy haired kid burst from the crowd, fists balled in defiance. "S-Stop it, you weirdo! Go back to wherever you came from and take that mini-freak with you! I don't know what you guys are doing but it's—"

A flash and the kid crumpled to the ground, arms, a leg and the center of his abdomen torn apart in less than a heartbeat. More screams from the crowd. The kid was choking in shock. He was still alive. Freya scowled. One more flash and his head lolled to the side, his lifeless eyes peering up at the students who immediately backed away, still screaming helplessly.

"Silence!" Freya yelled. "No one come near me."

Here, Kaiba shook his head and frowned. "Freya." He muttered. He straightened and started forward, toward her. Rumi, still slightly dazed, sat up and peered over. "What?" she gasped.

"Stay back! Or I'll tear you in half!" Freya snapped at Kaiba. But he seemed totally unafraid of her. "You need to stop this." He said.

"What? How dare you defy me? You're only a human. I could easily rip out your neck just like I'd snap a pencil!"

"I'm quite aware of that." Kaiba replied, to which Freya, and everyone else pretty much, showed immense surprise. "What are you talking about?" she demanded. "Who are you?"

She looked closely then, trying to see it. She approached and looked him straight in the eye.

Suddenly, she gasped sharply, covered her mouth and jumped back, eyes wide. "Oh my god! Oh my god!" she exclaimed in horror. She shook her head and took off toward the gate.

"Hey! Stop her!" the guards yelled. They fired at her with the machine guns, but miraculously, she dodged them and with superhuman effort, leapt over the wall and disappeared.

"Damn it! Go after her, now!" the woman who led Rumi in screamed.

"We can't. Only another Diclonius is strong enough to take her. It's suicide!" One of the officers said. "We need to keep these kids under lockdown. Some of them may need to disappear." He said gravely.

"I understand that wholly." The woman said. "Do whatever is necessary to get Freya back."

Before they could notice, Kaiba started back toward the back of the school. Tea and Yugi noticed and quickly trailed after him.

Dozens of crazy thoughts ran through his head as he ran toward the back exit before the police could barricade it. For some reason, memories had come flooding into his mind. Now that he thought about, there was this huge blank area in his memory of the orphanage that had somehow been wiped after his departure. So this was what that blank area had been.

"Freya." He muttered. He didn't notice Yugi and Tea following him.

/ooo/

Freya paused for breath at the shoreline, leaning heavily on the rail. She swallowed the bile at the back of her throat as she realized what just happened.

She'd killed someone. She'd had a good place at the school as Toshiko Suzumaki, the pop star. Now, she was 'the freak with horns'. Toshiko was forgotten. She leaned down on the rail, trying not to be sick.

"God." She muttered. She dropped from the rail and crouched down, clutching her stomach. "Oh, god." She clapped a hand over her mouth and gagged. "I won't be sick. I've killed so many people. Why am I getting upset, now?"

_Because he was there._

Freya jumped, and then realized that she was right, whoever this voice inside her head was. She sighed and leaned against the metal post supporting the railing. "Looks like it's time to take Kayley and move on." She whispered.

She gasped and jumped up, hitting her head on the railing and falling back down. Rubbing the sore area, she turned. Her eyes widened and the pain faded instantly. "It's you." She said.

Kaiba stared down at her blankly. "So, you were Freya all along." He said. She grew somber. "I apologize for fooling everyone. It was too easy." She mumbled, looking out towards the sea. "How did you get out? The police blocked all the exits."

"I got out before they reached the rear exit."

He went and knelt down next to her. "Is it really you, or is my mind playing tricks on me?" he asked quietly. She hesitated. "Depends on what you mean." She said. He hummed. "I've had dreams of a girl from a long time ago. She was in a battle with another girl. Both had horns like yours. The girl in my dream always had her arms torn off by something…that's when I wake up."

Freya sighed. "So you want to know if that's me." She said. He nodded. "I saw one of your arms come off." He said. She tilted her head in shame. "You're right about that. Both of my arms are gone. I have to wear these stupid prosthetics." She waved her hand around. "They drop off when I don't pay attention."

As she said this, she reached around, grabbed her own hand and yanked. It came off and fell limp in her lap. "I had a hunch when I first saw you, kid." She said. "It's been eight long, painful years. How did you forget all of that?"

Kaiba sighed. "I honestly don't know, Freya. Everything happened so fast." He admitted. Freya put her hand on his shoulder. "Did you make good use of that blank ticket?" she asked with a small smile. He nodded. "I did." He said. "Just like I promised."

"Good."

She stretched and folded her knees up. "I suppose you have questions. I know I do. How's Mokuba?"

"He's doing better than I am. He doesn't remember you at all." Kaiba said, a little depressed by the whole matter. He frowned. "Freya, what happened to you? When Mokuba and I found you on the beach, you weren't anything like you are right now."

Freya sighed. "And what's that?" she murmured.

"I hate to say it, but…a monster." Kaiba said quietly.

Freya sighed again with more of a frustrated air. "Look, kid. After I was taken from you guys, life got a hell of a lot worse for me. I escaped with a vengeance this time. And…something else."

"What was that?" Kaiba asked. But she bristled suddenly. "Later. We've got company."

Kaiba stood up and she turned slightly. "Yugi. Tea." She said softly. She looked away, guilt-ridden for what they'd seen. Tea cautiously approached. "Um, Toshi—no…Freya?" she almost whispered. Freya hummed sadly and scrunched into a ball. "Tea, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for you to see that. I didn't mean to kill that boy. No, that's dumb. Of course I meant to kill him. But, I'm sorry you guys had to see it."

"So you're the one behind the murders in this area." Yugi said gravely. She nodded. "I am. For the most part. But there are also copycats in the city, you know. They mimic my own methods to make it look like it was me. But I don't kill without a reason."

Tea scowled. "There shouldn't be any reasons." She snapped. "You ended someone's life back there. You caused immense grief and distress for his family and friends! You ruined his entire future!"

"_I know!!_" Freya screamed. Tea started and shrunk back. Freya glowered at her. " 'I was born to destroy humans'. That was said by the first Diclonius ever born. Her name was Lucy and it's because of her and the others that I'm alive. I'm the fifth generation of Diclonius and the strongest yet."

"What?" Yugi exclaimed. "Run that by us again."

"Diclonius. A two-horned human. My kind was genetically altered by over-curious humans decades ago. Whatever they messed with to create us is unknown. But whatever they did, they created their own doom. They made the opposite of a human. It's in my DNA to kill humans and fill the world with the Diclonii."

"I don't understand any of that." Tea said. As she spoke, there was the sound of fast footsteps and they all turned to see Joey and Tristan arrive, out of breath and exhausted. "Whew!" Tristan heaved. "It took us forever to get out of there. The whole school's on lockdown. The kid who was killed, his body was put into some sort of quarantine. No one can get out or in."

They both saw Freya and panicked. "Agh! What's she doing here? She'll kill us!" they yelled.

"Shut up!" Freya barked. They froze. "I'm not going to kill any of you."

She sighed irritably. "If you'll all come with me, there's something I'd like to show you. I can explain everything there."

A/N: Okay, here's the end. Freya has one more little secret to show them. Can any of you guess what it is? And this story isn't at all over. It's not even beginning.


	10. Child

A/N: Freya's next big secret

A/N: Freya's next big secret. I hope you all like! Oh, and the DVD with the 'Arrangement' files doesn't work, so my dad's going to re-burn it and a few others so they do work. It'll be a little longer yet because of this. Sorry.

**Child**

The inside of the apartment where Freya lived as Toshiko Suzumaki was simple in taste. But despite that, everyone felt extremely uncomfortable around her for understandable reasons. Freya tried to act hospitable even though she could sense their fear of her. She didn't blame them.

"I'll make some hot chocolate." She said. "Does anyone want any?"

Tea, Yugi, Joey and Tristan exchanged looks. They all sat together at the dining room table. Kaiba had taken a chair against the wall, staring at the floor with his arms crossed. He shook his head.

"Um, please." Tea said quietly. Freya sighed. "I apologize again for what you saw. I didn't mean for any of that."

She came back in a few minutes later with the instant cocoa and set the mugs in front of them. "I added some cinnamon. Makes it taste better." She said. She set some sugar cubes in the center. "It's a little bitter without it." She explained. She sat down on the floor next to a small coffee table. They turned their chairs a bit to face her. She had said she wished to tell them something.

"I'd like to show you all something." She said quietly. "You all noticed why I insisted you make as little noise as possible while coming in. I'm about to show you why."

She looked toward a door at the far end of the room. "Kayley, I'm home!" she called. They all turned toward the door as it opened and a little girl appeared. She seemed cautious at first, but the minute she saw Freya, she brightened. With a laugh, she bounded over. "Mommy!" she cried, leaping into her arms. Everyone stared.

"She looks like you." Tea said.

Kayley had two little horns sticking out of her head. This and the faded pink hair alerted them that this girl was yet another Diclonius. Kayley turned slowly, clinging to Freya. "Mommy, what are these humans doing here?" she asked. There was a small breeze that passed around them. None of them noticed Kayley release two vectors. Freya set her down and stood up. "Everyone, this is my daughter, Kayley. Kay, these are some friends from school. Can you say hello?"

Kayley looked down. "Hello." She said in a small voice.

"Sweetie, why don't you go play with your dolls over there. And no tearing their heads off like last time. I can't afford new ones."

"Okay." Kayley mumbled, hurrying to the corner and picking up a couple of headless Barbie dolls.

Freya turned back to them. "I know what you're thinking." She said. "I look too young to have a daughter. Well, Kayley isn't my real daughter. She calls me mom. When I broke out of the facility a second time, I was madder than ever. I broke into the euthanasia ward and stole one of the infants they were preparing to kill. There were three others, but Kayley was by far the weakest one. I had no choice but to take her and we barely escaped. She only has three vectors. Those are the invisible, or in my case transparent, hands that you saw me using. For one reason or another, she only developed three of them while the least amount is usually four. And unlike other Diclonii, who can lift heavy objects with them without a thought, Kayley can't even lift a car with them. The heaviest she can lift is a vacuum cleaner. It's like she's a watered down version of myself and the others."

Freya looked at Kayley with concern. "I have to keep her hidden." Freya said. "Because she's so weak, she's an easy target for Rumi or any other Diclonius they choose to send after me. Her range is only about three meters. And it's been so long since Lucy was killed. There's probably hundreds of Diclonii being kept confined in facilities all over the world."

"This sounds freaky." Tea said worriedly. "But why are they being confined?"

"Because we're dangerous to you humans. Every so often, a human pregnancy will result in a Diclonius birth. That child is then either killed right then and there or tested to see if it's good lab material. Kayley was originally thought to be a good subject. But then it was discovered that she was born with a human disorder called autism. It's a low degree, but she has trouble with many words and her sentences are often one-worded to keep it simple for her. Somehow, this autism messed with her Diclonius nature and stunted the growth of her horns and vectors. She's kind of a hybrid between humans and Diclonii."

Freya sighed.

"So," Joey said. "How do you know Kaiba? He certainly seems to know you. He freaked out when he saw that picture of you the police showed us."

"Eight years ago, he and his brother found me on the beach after I'd escaped the first time. But when Rumi attacked the home they took me to, I had to protect them. Rumi tore my arms off and I was taken back to the facility and given these stupid prosthetics."

As she spoke, her left arm came undone and fell to the floor with a thud. She looked at it and sighed. "They do that when I don't pay attention." She said.

"But if they're prosthetics, how do you move them so well?" Tea asked. Freya reached down and reconnected it to her joint. "My vectors control them for me. Believe me, they took forever to get the hang of."

She released twenty vectors and allowed them to float in plain sight for them to see. Two of them floated down to her arms and seemed to come to rest on top of them, the ghostly fingers interlocking with the prosthetic. The hand then lifted, bringing the arm up as it went. The fingers flexed, moving the prosthetic fingers as they did. "It takes a lot of work. I have to be careful to keep them at a low frequency so that no one can see them. They'd never stay on correctly without my vectors to control them."

"Okay, can you like pull them back in or something? They're creepy!" Tristan stammered as one of them came a little too close to his ear. He swatted at it furiously, but it didn't move. Freya giggled. "I'm afraid only other vectors can keep them down. Human flesh does nothing against them. In fact, if I wanted to, I could take your hand off with them. They vibrate so much, they can cut through objects. Fortunately," she said with a glance at Kayley. "Her vectors are developed enough to do at least that. That's how she destroyed her favorite teddy bear by accident."

Freya shook her head. "There's nothing more for her than what I can offer. If she were to get captured, I'd probably die."

"Is that facility really that horrible?" Joey asked. Freya nodded. "We're put through experiments and tests that are worse than torture. Our whole lives are spent in confinement. Our tempers decide what kind of confinement we endure. For the milder ones, chained by the wrists to a wall in a moderately heated room. For the ones like me, double chains at the arms, waist, neck, legs, stomach and held inside two double security steel-enforced locks opened by computer commands. To make things worse, most of us aren't given clothes. I had an irregular heartbeat for a long time and was kept in a special suit to monitor it while I was in a state of heavy confinement. I was kept in a watertight container chamber after I escaped the first time. I pretended to be tranquilized when it was time for the annual cleaning. I killed the workers. The rest was easy."

She looked over at Kayley. "Kay, I thought I told you to stop tearing their heads off." She said in reference to the scattered doll heads lying around their decapitated bodies. Kayley turned around and grinned. "Whoopsie." She said. Freya shook her head. "Look, maybe you guys oughta go for now. I have to put these dolls back together."

She grabbed one of them and Kayley grabbed it at the same time. Within seconds, a fierce tug-of-war started up over the doll.

Kaiba had been silent this whole time, listening to the story. He had no idea it had been that bad for Freya. He frowned. Maybe it was worth a little research.

/ooo/

That night, Kaiba did a web search using the term Diclonius. After two misspellings, he found what he wanted. A site that banned him from use. He smirked. That was a sure sign that what was on that site was for private use of the various facilities and required a very specific password. He knew he could break into the site, but that it would take a little longer than usual. Finally, an hour and a half later, he was in. He gasped.

"There's information on hundreds of people here!" he exclaimed. Freya hadn't been kidding. There literally were hundreds of Diclonii in existence. But the hundreds listed were just on the East Coast. There were four other sites dedicated to American cases alone. They provided medical information, background history and names of relatives who may have carried to the disease. He searched through the records until he found Freya's name.

Diclonius #32

Age: 17

Weight: 98 lbs

Height: 5'9"

Vectors: 43

Given name: Freya Kuzumayo

Father: Robert Kuzumayo

Mother: Emily Peyton-Kuzumayo

Number 32 has been adjusting to the new confinement well. The last scan revealed a 43rd vector growing rather quickly from the top of her spinal column. We believe this relates to her ability to grow new ones per year. We plan to study the growth of the 43rd vector and determine what gives her this ability. She shows a genuine interest in improving her temper and gets along fairly well with numbers 16, 21 and 4. We hope that with Emery's care, we can improve her well enough to amputate the horns and release her into society for the very first time.

Kaiba just stared. Literal records were kept on Freya's health and activities during her confinement. He looked at the date and rolled his eyes. Of course it just had to be the report from eight years ago prior to her first escape. He scrolled through the records until he found the date he estimated her second escape.

This record was immensely different. By now, she was nearly twenty-two and stayed the same height and weight. She now had forty-five vectors with a range of twenty-three meters. But it was her personal record that drew his attention:

Number 32 has grown increasingly violent over the past several months. She tends to thrash at her chains and kills anyone but Emery if they come too close. She will allow us ten feet into her range but any closer and she will strike. Only Emery can get closer than that. Our dreams of rehabilitating the first Diclonius have crashed. We will have to place number 32 in ultra-security confinement until she can be killed.

According to Freya's report, Kaiba was able to conclude that some catalytic trigger had caused the once mild Freya to turn vicious. And from what he'd seen at school, she was still vicious. So what had caused Freya to change so much? Did it have something to do with the loss of her arms? Her dangerous nature had to have fully developed after she was taken from them eight years ago after her fight with Rumi. Maybe Rumi had something to do with this. Or maybe another Diclonius altogether. And what about this Emery person? On a hunch, he decided to try to find her on the site. If she was the only person Freya would allow within her range, perhaps she could give him some vital information. He scanned the site carefully, searching for anything. Finally, he hit a lead. It was the contact information for the technicians in charge of certain Diclonii. He looked until he found Emery Peyton and then reached for the phone, dialing her number.

He counted four rings before he heard someone pick up.

_"Director, if this is you, this had __**better**__ be important. I was actually sound asleep for once and—"_

"Emery Peyton?" Kaiba said, interrupting her little rant. He heard a funny throat sound on the other end. "_Oh, forgive me. Um…who is this?_" she asked.

"My name is Seto Kaiba. I'm calling with some questions for you." He said.

"_Wait, wait, wait. Seto Kaiba? Hang on, this is my business line. How'd you get my number?"_

"Please listen to me. I'm calling about Freya."

There was a heavy pause at the end. Then, "_How do you know about her?" _

"I met her when I was a kid and then she showed up again this afternoon. I have some important questions concerning her. Is there any way I could meet you?"

"_Um…well, the thing is, Freya's case is heavily classified. She really shouldn't even exist. I don't understand how she knows you and the fact that you're still alive baffles me. Freya only ever let me get near her and she killed anyone else who dared to try. How is it you know her?_"

"She lets me and several other people near her. But she killed a boy today who tried to stand up to her. I'd like to speak with you."

"_Hmm…all right. I'll try to take a vacation leave. I take it from your name that you're the president of KaibaCorp.?" _

"Yes."

"_Fine. I'll try to be there at noon tomorrow. I'm scheduled to work with number 16 a little more beforehand." _

"Great."

They hung up and Kaiba sighed. "One step closer." He muttered.

A/N: Okay, so what'd you think of Kayley? Isn't she cute? I like her because she's so sweet. I based her off of Nana. I can't wait to bring Emery back!


	11. Emery

A/N: Okay, I checked the DVD's, the story files don't work and it'll be a few more days while my dad sends me links to them th

A/N: Okay, I checked the DVD's, the story files don't work and it'll be a few more days while my dad sends me links to them through his website. He knows I'll want to get to them right away and believe me, when I do, I'll write like a demon to get a new chapter of 'Of Life and Arrangements' up and ready for all of you who have been so patient with me. I especially want to thank The Duelist's Heiress for her never-ending support through this difficult time for my stories and me. This chapter is dedicated to her especially. Thank you so much.

**Emery**

She wasn't what he'd expected.

The woman with the long red hair and glasses, thick orange sweater and bleached blue jeans was totally the opposite of what he'd expected. He'd expected someone more confident and this woman radiated self-consciousness like a heater. He noted that she could look nice for her age if she took the time to try. She nodded politely. "I guess you wanted to speak to me about my daughter, Freya." She said. He nodded. "Yes. I have some questions concerning her and it mentioned on the site that you're the only one she ever allowed past ten feet into her range." He said gravely.

"How on earth did you know that? That site requires a strict entry code to view! Don't tell me that you broke into it." She said wearily. He nodded. Her head flopped to her chest. "Great. You could get me fired." She mumbled. "I should report you for this."

"If I'm arrested, I won't be able to relay information about Freya's location to you, now would I?" he said with a sly expression. She started to pout. "Black-mailer." She growled. "Okay, so what do you want to know about her?"

"I want to know pretty much anything that could keep her out of confinement." He replied. Emery sighed unhappily. "I'm afraid that's next to impossible. Freya is the fifth generation of Diclonius which is practically unheard of. Somehow, we missed a link created by Lucy, the first Diclonius. We traced Freya back to her grandmother, a young girl whom Lucy touched with her vectors. I believe the girl's name was Iruka Kimigashi. She worked at a restaurant and often walked home alone. We believe that's when she must have met Lucy. In the end, she ended up having a child at a young age and managed to protect that child from the authorities because it was a Diclonius."

She paused. "Then, that child grew up and was able to spread the disease to a young pregnant woman who then gave birth to a Diclonius daughter."

Kaiba did his best to follow this complicated span of events. Emery paused again. "I am quite certain that you might have met this child I speak of, the infant belonging to the pregnant mother."

Kaiba thought hard. "I might." He said. "But I don't want to guess."

Emery nodded. "I don't blame you. It's our job to keep careful records of this. That child was number 16, my niece, Rumi and Freya's half-sister. My sister, Emily, was pregnant by accident before she met her husband, Robert. The man to whom the baby belonged was horrified at his daughter being born a Diclonius and Emily was too terrified to be a good mother to her. She left Rumi in Kevin's care, and she always regretted it. Later, because the disease was still in her body, she gave birth to yet another Diclonius girl, my niece Freya. But this time, remembering Rumi, she refused to go to the hospital and risk losing Freya too. So she had her baby at home and therefore, protected Freya. However, Kevin abused Rumi in ways too horrible to mention. By the time Rumi's vectors developed, she had begun to hate humans and she killed her father and many, many others before she was finally apprehended."

Emery sighed at last. "Rumi knows that she's related to Freya by blood and she both respects and hates her older sister. But Freya is completely ignorant of it."

"Why is that?" Kaiba asked. Emery grew deeply saddened. "The Diclonii are programmed to despise humans and kill them. Freya was no exception. At the age of four, one year after her vectors had developed, she killed Emily and Robert and ran away from home. This is not unusual. Diclonius children often kill their parents simply because they're human. We managed to capture Freya a week after she ran away and because Emily was my twin, I was able to convince Freya that I was her mother. Emily and I were so similar in fact, that Freya instantly forgot she'd killed Emily and believed what I told her to be true. I know this to be a fact because she's never turned her vectors on me. Whenever I got too close, she'd simply throw me out of her range. She killed anyone else."

Kaiba just stared. "So Rumi and Freya are sisters." He said. "And Freya doesn't know."

"No." Emery said. "I keep meaning to tell her the truth, but I'm…afraid to. I love Freya so much she might as well be my daughter. But if she were to find out that her real mother is dead and that I'm merely her aunt, I believe that she may snap. All of the love I gave to her growing up might just leave her. She might just become a real monster."

"What do you mean?" Kaiba asked.

"Freya has a strong sense of justice when it comes to her kind. She is always angered when she senses a baby Diclonius being brought in and the technicians always worried because her thrashing always got worse whenever she heard the cries. When Mariko, the infamous number 35 was born, Freya, four at the time and freshly captured, sensed it immediately. She sees every Diclonius as a sibling and doesn't prefer to fight them. That's why she stole that baby when she escaped."

"Kayley." Kaiba said gravely. Emery sighed. "I take it she showed you." She said. Kaiba nodded. "Yes. She mentioned that Kayley is a weak case because she was born autistic."

Emery nodded slowly. "Kayley is the first case of Diclonius to be born with a human ailment." She said. "Freya could have taken any of the stronger infants in the ward, but she chose Kayley out of all of them. I watched her do it. I caught up with her the second time and found her in the euthanasia ward with the infant Diclonii. I saw her looking at each of them, touching their heads gently and letting their tiny hands grasp her fingers. I realized that she felt a maternal bond with these infants, even though she knew she could only save one. I knew she was choosing carefully which one to take with her. There was a boy and three girls. She came across Kayley, at the time, called Suzuka. She wrapped her in a tight blanket and left the ward slowly. Her vectors are abnormally strong, so any bullets fired at her and the baby were stopped instantly. She tore the guards to pieces. I believe that she was releasing her rage on them for keeping those infants locked away like that."

Emery smiled softly. "Freya is different from the others. I truly think she believes herself to be Chosen. She is under the impression that she is the strongest for a reason and that reason is to save her kind from us. She must believe that if she continues to fight and save as many Diclonius infants as she can, that she can save her species from extinction. I don't think she knows that we're losing anyway."

Emery's expression grew extremely grave. "However, if she learns the truth about me and Rumi, she may snap and become a true demon. It's impossible to kill her with ammunition. The most that's ever been done to her was Rumi's act of severing her arms. She doesn't even need them."

Emery collapsed suddenly, holding her head to her knees. Kaiba realized that she was crying, terrified all of a sudden. He stood up and went over, kneeling down in front of her. "Are you all right, miss?" he asked.

"I don't know what to do!" she exclaimed. "Freya is the only thing I have left and if she loses control, it might be possible for her to be killed! She'll give up her life to protect Kayley and that's why I'm so worried."

Kaiba's eyes widened as he realized what she was saying. "You mean is Kayley is captured and put to threat, Freya will give up hoping that Kayley will be spared?"

Emery nodded. "Yes." She said, sniffing. "That's exactly it. Freya is in grave danger. Rumi wants so badly to kill her and Freya doesn't know that Rumi is her sister. If she knew, then she'd refuse to fight Rumi and try to talk to her. Rumi only wants Freya to respect her like she respects Freya and until that happens, she'll continue to fight her. Freya could end up dead!"

Kaiba frowned. "Then there must be some way to keep that from happening." He said.

"I just don't know. Freya is so dear to me. I can't bear to lose her!"

She looked up suddenly. "You said you're a friend of hers. You have to try to talk to her. Does she remember you?"

He nodded. "I believe so. I was a little shocked to see her again." He said truthfully. He turned. "But I'm just not sure anymore."

Emery hummed. "Well, if you promise to help her, I'll keep giving you information about the Diclonius. But if I lose my job over this, you're going to be in big trouble."

/ooo/

Freya stared out her window, worry spreading on her face. Kayley had come down with a fever and she knew that they were even more vulnerable than before. Rumi was still in the city, albeit help captive, but there nonetheless. Freya knew it was only a matter of time. If Kayley was caught and killed, or worse, taken back to the facility for experimentation, she'd never forgive herself. She still hadn't forgiven herself for failing Seto and Mokuba eight years ago. She'd let them down, but she wouldn't let Kayley down.

She got up and went to check on Kayley. She took the rag off her head and replaced it with a new one. Her face was red and she was breathing heavily. She opened her eyes a slit and looked at her. "Mommy?" she whispered.

"Shh, go back to sleep, Kayley." Freya said gently.

"Mommy, I'm scared. Another horns is here."

"I know." Freya said. Kayley couldn't pronounce 'Diclonius' and called them 'horns' instead. "I won't let them get you, Kay."

Kayley smiled softly. "I know."

Freya smiled. This little girl meant so much to her. Her original intention had been to train Kayley, teach her to use her vectors to kill the humans who had ruined her life by trying to kill her. But instead, she'd ended up falling in love with the kid.

"Mommy?"

"Yeah?"

"I wanna see the water." Kayley whispered. "I wanna go splash!"

Freya laughed. "Of course." She said, truly trying to mean it. But she knew in her heart that as long as Rumi had it in for her, she could never take Kayley out of the house. It had taken forever just to get her independent enough to stay inside when she left. Freya knew she was a terrible mother to her, but she did her best anyway. She dreamed of saving more and more Diclonius infants and Kayley would be the very first. She reached out and stroked Kayley's soft pink hair.

"I'll take you someday." She said. "You'll go splash someday."

But Kayley had fallen asleep once more. She felt her forehead. The fever seemed to be going down. She replaced the rag on the girl's head and got up, shutting the door as she left. Then, she sank down against the wall and sighed deeply.

A/N: I've been watching AIR and the last little bit with Freya and Kayley was inspired by it. It's such a cute anime and the inspiration for a special video I'm making with it for my dad. My dad wrote songs awhile back and the one I'm going to use is called 'Jamie' and it's my personal favorite. My daughter someday will probably be called Jamie for the song. That's how pretty it is and how much I love it.


	12. Request

A/N: The 'Arrangement' files aren't working right now so my dad is going to upload my stories to his site

A/N: The 'Arrangement' files aren't working right now so my dad is going to upload my stories to his site. It'll be a few more days, but I'll update as fast as I can. Please don't give up!!

**Request**

Kaiba knew it was only a matter of time before Rumi decided to come back for a second try. He had to talk to Freya immediately. Emery agreed to accompany him for his own safety, just in case Rumi was already there. Freya would probably refuse to fight Rumi for Kayley's sake if that were the case. Emery knew that as long as Freya believed she was her mother, she and Kaiba could depend on Freya for protection. She wasn't sure what would happen if Freya figured out the truth and she didn't want to chance it while there were bystanders around.

"So if Freya ever starts to act suspiciously whenever you visit, whether I'm with you or not, get the hell out of there and whatever you do, never bring your brother to see her. It's best that it's just you so you can get away from her fast if need be." Emery warned him on the way there. Kaiba nodded. "I understand. But what about Kayley?" he asked.

"I can't say for sure. Kayley is old enough to understand the danger of being around an angered Diclonius. Not to mention, she's a Diclonius herself and she can probably defend herself to some degree with her own vectors. Even so, Freya's maternal bond with her is extraordinary and that will probably linger if she should ever regress."

"Tell me, exactly what could happen if she does regress while I'm there?"

"Well, she'd instantly recognize you as a threat and if it's really bad, she won't warn you ahead of time. If Kayley is there, grab her and get outside as fast as possible. If she was allowed to get a hold of you, she'd rip you apart before you could register what happened."

That chilling statement made him shudder. "I'll have to be careful, then." He said grimly.

They pulled up in front of the apartment registered to Toshiko Suzumaki. Of course, everyone knew that Toshiko was really Freya, the vicious killer. Emery got out. "Wait here. I'll signal you if it's safe. If I wave my arm back the way we came, it means she's regressing and to get out of here as fast as you can. Got it?"

"What about you?" he asked. "Won't she recognize you as a threat as well?"

"Possibly. But I've cheated death for years by working with Diclonii and it's a risk I'm willing to take." She said determinedly. She turned and headed up the steps. He watched with baited breath as she knocked on the door and waited. When she smiled and waved suddenly, he knew Freya had answered. Then, she turned to him and beckoned him over. He sighed and shut the engine off, getting out and heading up the steps.

"So, everything's fine, huh?" he said. Emery nodded. "Yep. Freya's feeling just fine. Kayley's great, too."

"Yes." Freya said. "I just fixed some breakfast for her. Hey, has the school been freed, yet?"

"Yes." Kaiba replied. "But a few of the students are still quarantined. I don't think they've told yet that you attended."

Freya hummed. "I'm not sure whether that's good news or bad."

She turned back inside to Kayley who sat at the table, munching on a piece of toast. She was wrapped in a thick, fluffy blanket and only her arms and face could be seen. She waved to Emery and Kaiba and took another bite of toast.

Freya turned to Emery. "Hey, Mom. How are you?" she asked quietly as she poured herself some milk.

"I'm doing just fine, Freya. I trust you've been well." Emery said. Freya nodded. "Yes. I'm so edgy, though. I keep worrying about Kayley. She wants to go swimming in the ocean and I don't know if I can risk taking her outside."

"You can sense Rumi, though, right?" Emery said hopefully. Freya sighed. "Yes, mama, but I can sense Diclonii all over the world if I wanted to. I can't just focus on one individual."

"Oh." Emery said softly. "Well, how about we all go?"

"Huh?" Freya said.

"Yes, I'll take Kayley down to the water and you can talk to Mr. Kaiba. He has some questions for you."

Freya brightened a little. "Okay. Thanks."

/ooo/

Kaiba stood leaning on the railing and watching Kayley splash about in the water while Emery tried to keep up with her. Freya sat with her forehead resting against a metal post, watching absently. "You sure have changed." She said to him. He glanced at her curiously. "What do you mean?"

She smiled. "You're much more serious now than you were. How old are you, now?"

"Eighteen." He replied.

"Ah. A good age. The day I turned eighteen, they moved me into ultra-security confinement for the first time. I was barely awake, but I was able to see my mother, watching as they secured me in place."

"Don't tell me that's a good memory." Kaiba said, bewildered.

"Any memory with my mother in it is a good one." Freya whispered. "I don't remember my father, so I focused on my mother my entire life. She's always been there for me. I remember the one time she couldn't. She was very sick and sent another technician in to talk with me. Her name was Ikki. But the minute she approached me, I tore her apart. She wasn't my mother and I wouldn't let her near me. Mother scolded me afterward and told me to respect others."

"How can you kill like that? Don't you feel any remorse?" he asked quietly. He remembered how kind she'd been when he and Mokuba had found her.

"I kill because I was born to do so." She said simply. "I stopped feeling remorse a long time ago."

She released a single vector. "For the longest time, it seemed like these things were my only friends. They protected me from danger, they were able to steal food for me from a great distance and they never left me. It took awhile to realize that it was me doing all of that and not my vectors themselves. I was controlling them. When I realized that I could kill with them, at first I was afraid. I didn't know what to think. The entire time I was kept captive before I met you, I was under the impression that all humans were bad except for mother. Then, I met you and Mokuba. I'll admit, I almost killed the two of you when I realized you both were human. But before I escaped, Mama told me to give humans a chance. So I did and it paid off for me. I met the only friends I'd ever had in my entire life."

She looked at him and smiled. "And to me, you'll always be a special friend. I suppose time drew us apart, huh?" she said, turning back to the water.

"I suppose, a little." He replied. "For some reason, I took what you said to heart and forgot all about you and the Diclonii. But after you reappeared as Toshiko, things started to come back. I started to have nightmares about your battle with Rumi. I'd dream about you, facing away from me and then, slowly turning around. I'd always wake up before I could see your face."

Freya glanced at him. "I suppose you forgot because it must have been horrifying for you to see that happen. You were too young to witness something like that."

"Don't be saying it affected me more than you, Freya. You lost both of your arms that day." He snapped.

"I don't care. I don't need them. My vectors are enough. That's why I focus on protecting my horns during a battle." She said.

"What?"

"My horns control the vectors. Without them, the vectors would go dormant forever."

She sighed and looked up at the sky. "You know, I didn't forget about you, kid. I missed you like crazy. That's the only reason I endured all of that torture. After they took me away from you guys and gave me these fake arms, I grew manic. I couldn't stand being locked up knowing I'd caused you to see so much violence and suffering that would live with you forever. I wanted so badly to apologize to you for everything. I felt so horrible. I wouldn't eat, I could barely sleep. By the time I escaped the second time, I weighed close to seventy-five pounds. I was barely able to make it out of the compound. I killed everyone I came across. It was all I could do just to carry Kayley. I did all of this so I could have a chance to come back and say I'm sorry."

Kaiba realized with a jolt that she had become uncontrollable in confinement all because of him. He had been the catalytic trigger to her change in personality.

"So?" she said, looking up at him.

"So what?" he asked.

"Do you forgive me or not? I need to know. I didn't break out a second time just to hear you give me the silent treatment." She said.

"Freya, yes. But what I don't understand is why I forgot you in the first place."

"I don't understand that, myself. Wanna know something? The only reason I put on that concert was because I recognized you shortly after arriving. I thought you'd know me for sure the minute I stepped onto the stage. The song I sang…the first one. I wrote it for you and Mokuba in the hopes you'd get the message. I missed you and I was sure that it was you. I was hoping to apologize to you and then kill myself quickly before Rumi showed up. Guess that plan flopped, now didn't it?"

"Kill yourself?" he exclaimed in shock.

"If people thought that someone had killed me, there'd be no reason to hold anyone captive. I'm impossible to kill. I guess I should have known this would happen. You know, you're the first human besides my mom that I've ever willingly allowed near me. You do know that, right?"

"I supposed you must really hate humans, then." He said. She nodded. "I do. Humans have been so cruel to me and the others. But you didn't even know what I was, so you didn't have a chance to. I'll always remember that, you know."

He nodded and then he remembered what Emery had told him. If Freya started to forget them, she could turn into a true monster. He was sure he didn't want to see that. But what would, no, what _could_ he do to stop it if it happened? Was there anything?

"I have to say, I'm quite enjoying this. I've waited so long just to speak to you again, kid. There's nothing like a heart-to-heart chat after years of separation."

She smiled and watched Kayley try to dunk Emery in the water and then Emery whirled and dunked Kayley, laughing.

"Freya," he said. "What was it like?"

"What?"

"Your confinement."

"Oh." She said. "Why do you want to know?"

"To better understand what you went through." He replied. "It's been bothering me a long time."

"I was kept inside a dark room that was locked by two big steel doors and several computerized locks. I was chained in many places and kept under constant surveillance. I was fed through tubes and at one point, I thrashed so much, I pulled the tubes out of their sockets. But I hadn't eaten anything and I couldn't keep down anything solid. Mama tried her best to help me by going in each day with bland oat water. It's like oatmeal. She would give a little to me at a time. But as soon as the food hit my tongue, I'd throw up. It was worse than torture and I was so scared. I thought I would die. Then, they got me hooked up again and I was so weak, I let them near. They tied bandages around my eyes again and replaced the mask around my face. But the minute I had a chance, I broke out. The rest is history from there."

"They had no right." Kaiba said. "They treated you badly and you retaliated. You didn't deserve all of that."

Freya blinked in surprise. "Thanks. But it's over, now. I'm not going to get caught again." She said. He shook his head. "It doesn't matter, Freya. They had no right to treat you like that. Before I somehow forgot about you, I do remember that I wondered obsessively what had happened to you and where you were. I also wondered if you were right when you said they were going to kill you."

She smirked at this. "Actually, I didn't let anyone close enough to inject anything in me to kill me." She said smugly. "I always ripped their heads off before they could."

She sighed. "The sun's starting to go down. Oh, where did you find my mom, anyway?"

"I found her number online. I had questions about you, that's all." He said.

"I have a question for you, too." She said. She stood up and looked him dead in the eye. "Now listen carefully to me, because this is important." She said. "If I ever start to talk about killing, I want you to kill me yourself. There is one type of bullet that my vectors can't stop. It's gonna sound cliché, but it's true. My vectors cannot stop a silver bullet. If I ever become threatening, kill me with a silver bullet. Understand?"

To put it mildly, he was shocked. "Freya, I'm not going to kill you—with anything!" he exclaimed angrily.

"It doesn't matter because if in the event I lose control, I'll even kill you and I won't know it. Not until I wake up. So promise me that if I should regress, which is quite possible, that you will kill me without hesitation."

She seemed desperate to get his word that he would. He sighed. "Freya, at the moment, I cannot promise anything. Why are you asking me of all people?"

"Because I trust you, kid. If I should regress, kill me without hesitation."

She turned suddenly and her entire outlook changed immediately from that of grim message to happy greeting for her daughter. "Kayley, did you have fun?" she cried.

"Yes!" Kayley replied. "I splashed big!"

Freya laughed. "I'm sure you did."

Kaiba was left to brood on what he'd been told.

Later, as he drove Emery to the hotel she was staying at, he told her what Freya had asked him to do. Emery pondered this a minute. "I think that Freya truly wishes not to kill, even though every instinct she has tells her to. She's worried that if she loses control, she may kill everyone she loves. She wants you to kill her first because she knows that it's for the good of everyone around her. No one yet has figured out why her vectors can't stop silver bullets. Only one other Diclonius was like this and she was killed by one last year."

Kaiba sighed. "But I can't kill her. It's like a betrayal." He said.

"If it was, she wouldn't ask you to do it. It's more like a rescue mission." Emery said softly. "She wants you to rescue everyone should she regress. Of course, that's unlikely right now, so you shouldn't brood on it."

He thought about it, though. All the way back home and then, all through the night.

**Forgetfulness**


	13. Forgetfulness

A/N: Things get a little crazy here

**A/N:** Things get a little crazy here. I won't go any further so as not to ruin the chapter.

**Forgetfulness**

_Kaiba didn't know where he was. He was standing in a darkened room and couldn't even tell if his body existed. He took a tentative step forward. _

_Instantly, bright lights snapped on, blinding him for a second. He shook his head to clear it. _

_"All right, lets' get this over with." He heard a voice say on a speaker. He looked around. As he turned to the left, he stopped. His eyes went wide. _

_"No!" a little girl with long black hair and horns screamed. "No, no more! No more! I'm too scared! Stop it!" _

_"Freya." Kaiba said to himself. It could only be her. "Freya!" he yelled. He ran in front of her, but she didn't seem to see him. She continued to look up at the glass window far above her with terror in her eyes. There was a sound like thunder and a large cannonball-type projectile slammed into the wall above her head. It bounced off her head on its way down and she started to whimper in pain. "Please, stop it!" she cried. _

_"That was two-twenty. Lets' go one higher." The person on the speaker said. Kaiba realized they were testing weights on her vectors. If she could stop them, they wouldn't hurt her. If she couldn't…._

_Another one was launched at her and she started to scream again. Kaiba expected this one to be retargeted just like before. Instead, it collided with her chest and he heard a faint __**crack**__! She screamed in agony and collapsed, the chains holding her wrists tightening as she fell to her knees, gasping. "No." she wheezed. "Please, no more!" _

_Her breath was coming in thick, heavy gasps. A black bruise was spreading over her skin above the heart-monitor suit. "No." she whispered. Kaiba scowled and reached out to try to grab the chains. But they slipped right through his hands. "Freya, get up!" he yelled. _

_"No…more." She whispered. She was starting to lose consciousness. With a sigh, she fell limp against the chains, hanging with her face just above the ground. _

_"Freya!" Kaiba shouted. _

_"Now I've seen everything!" Rumi chanted as she released her vectors at Freya. Freya was rocketed back against the wall as Rumi barraged her relentlessly. _

_Kaiba watched in horror as it started up again, the same nightmare he'd been having for weeks, months. _

_Freya leapt up in front of his younger self to try to protect him and as she did, there was a flash as Rumi sliced her fingers off at the knuckles. _

_"No! This can't be happening again!" Kaiba stammered. _

_Freya screamed as her right arm was torn off, and then her left. Before she collapsed, she screamed and lashed back at Rumi, taking her right arm off in milliseconds. _

_Suddenly, the dream took a different turn. He expected Freya to collapse like she always had. This time, Rumi jumped back up, the stump of her arm bleeding heavily as she glared at Freya. "Die!" she screamed. All of her vectors flew out at Freya and to his horror, she just sat there, watching. As she stood up and turned to him, the center of her torso exploded in a cloud of blood. One half of her collapsed and the other fell to the ground with a heavy thud in front of him. Her lifeless eyes stared up at him in mild surprise as the blood spread around her. _

"_AHHH!_"

He bolted up, drenched in a cold sweat and gasping for air. "No." he muttered. He rubbed his eyes and looked around frantically. There was no blood. Nothing. He was in his home, in his own bed and had been asleep until the nightmare had woken him up, again. He sighed heavily. That had been different. He was certain she hadn't been ripped in half. So why the change?

"Freya." He muttered. "What on earth is happening to me?"

/ooo/

The next morning, Kaiba was still shaken by that nightmare. It had seemed so real. He wanted to speak to Freya about it as soon as possible. She might know why his dreams changed so drastically and so suddenly. But he was sure to keep Emery's advice in mind. The fact that Freya's disguise had been broken at school the other day might already be enough to cause some damage.

He barely noticed the drive over, not until he parked alongside the street by Freya's apartment. He glanced up at the windows. To his surprise, he could see her sitting at one of them, staring out at the city with a blank look on her face. Puzzled, he got out and went to the steps.

He knocked once and to further his confusion, Kayley answered. "Hello."

"Kayley, is your…mother here?" he asked. He'd almost forgotten what Freya had told them about Kayley. She nodded. "Mm-hmm. Mommy's here. She's staring."

Kayley turned to Freya who sat motionless in the chair, still gazing out the window. She didn't turn to see who had come to the front door. Kaiba blinked. "Is there something of interest out there?" he asked Kayley. But she'd already skipped off to her Barbie dolls. He saw that despite the tape scattered on the floor, Kayley had still succeeded in tearing their heads off. Now, she was focusing on the arms and legs. Kaiba stepped inside and approached Freya.

"Freya?" he asked quietly. Slowly, she turned to face him. Her eyes were completely expressionless. "Hm?"

"Is something wrong?" he asked. She didn't move. She continued to stare at him like that, as though she were seeing him for the first time.

"Who are you?" she asked. His eyes went wide. "Freya, it's me. Seto." He said. She shook her head slowly. "I know no one by that name." She said. Kaiba grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. "Freya, you can't forget like this. Unless you're bluffing, cut it out this minute!"

She sighed and turned back to the window.

"Freya, you always called me 'kid'. Remember?"

Here, her eyes widened a bit. "Kid?" she said quietly. He nodded. "Yeah."

But she frowned, closed her eyes and shook her head. "It's just hazy. I'll be better tomorrow." She whispered. She turned back. Kaiba sighed and straightened up. He turned to go. Kayley stood in front of him, holding out a headless, legless and armless doll in one hand and the pieces in the other. She stared up at him inquisitively.

"I'm not playing dolls with you." He said firmly. She shook her head. "Help mommy." She said. "Mommy won't talk to me. Will you help mommy?"

Kaiba just gazed down at her. He didn't know what to tell her.

"I'll do my best." He said at last. Kayley smiled and nodded. She went back to dismantling her dolls. As he headed toward the door, it opened suddenly of its own accord. He was startled at first and then he heard Kayley giggling. "I've been practicing." She chimed. He glanced back at her once and then left as silently as he'd arrived.

/ooo/

"Well, I don't know why Freya wouldn't recognize you. That's not exactly suspicious behavior. When I said 'suspicious', I meant glaring at you, releasing her vectors or snapping. That sort of thing." Emery said as she struggled to unpack her carryon case with one hand while juggling the phone with the other. Her eyes crossed as a fly buzzed in her direction and she barely paid attention to what Kaiba was saying.

"_Look, I went to visit and she looked up at me with a blank stare and said 'who are you' like she really didn't know." _

Emery swatted at the fly with one of her blouses. "Well, I don't know. Freya's always been a tad different from the others. Maybe she was just going through a weird phase."

"_I doubt it, Emery. Listen, something about that look she had wasn't right. I'm going back to try to talk with her, again." _

"Don't tell me you're scared of her." Emery laughed as she fell backwards trying to swat the fly. "I mean," she grunted as she sat up and leaned on the mattress. "You were the first human besides me to treat Freya with any kind of respect. I sorta doubt she'd hurt you, anyway. Of course, there are such things as backward theories, you know."

On the other end, Kaiba sighed heavily. "Never mind. I deal with this myself." He grumbled.

"_Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you._"

He hung up and shook his head.

The office door flew open suddenly and he looked up to see Mokuba running in, as fast as he could go. "Seto, turn on the TV!" he cried. "Something horrible just happened!"

Kaiba did so and watched as the news came on. The usual anchorwoman was there at the scene describing the event.

"_We're here live at Domino High School where four mangled bodies have just been discovered on the grounds. Police officials are unsure as to the identities of the victims, or their killer. On top of the murders, half the school appears to have been demolished. The architect who designed the school is here now."_

A man could be seen talking to officers in the background and came forward to talk to the camera. "_I don't exactly believe what's going on. It looks like the supports were ripped out by a superman of sorts." _He said in bewilderment.

"_Why do you say that?"_ the reporter asked.

_"Because we found gouges in the concrete that look like handprints." _The man replied. "_I've never seen anything like this." _

"_Well,"_ the reporter said. _"That's our live report. More info at seven." _

Mokuba turned to his brother. "It just happened about an hour ago." He said. "What do you think could have done it?"

Kaiba was scowling at his desk. "Not what, Mokuba. Who." He said.

"What?" his brother exclaimed. Kaiba got up and started for the door. "It's a long story, Mokuba. I'll be back!"

Kaiba knew he had to get to Freya's and fast before the police figured out it was her. This was the same thing she'd done a few days ago at the same location. If they discovered the connection between her murder of that boy and these four people, they'd try to arrest her. And when they got there, all they'd find was an angry adult Diclonius ready to tear them apart like matchsticks.

When he pulled up alongside the curb, he was relieved to see that he'd arrived first. But the police weren't idiots and he could already hear the sirens in the distance. They might have been given anonymous tips about the killing a few days ago. He hurried up the stairs and tried to open the door. "Freya! It's me, open this door!" he yelled.

The door opened, but instead of Freya, Kayley stood there. Her eyes were wide with terror and she was clutching her arm in pain. He staggered back a bit when he saw that her arm was no longer there. All that remained of her right arm was a torn, bleeding stump.

"H-Help!" she whimpered. He knelt down and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Kayley, where's your mother?" he asked.

"Mommy hurt me. She took my arm away!" Kayley cried. Without warning, she threw her remaining arm around his neck, sobbing uncontrollably. "I'm scared! I'm scared!" she cried. He gently picked her up, ignoring the blood slowly seeping on his clothes. He'd been afraid of this and he was silently cursing Emery for not being concerned about Freya's odd behavior. He scanned the area carefully. The apartment was completely dark. He slowly proceeded inside. "Freya?" he called. "Are you there?"

Kayley clung tighter to him as he went further in. "I'm scared. Lets' leave." She murmured.

"Freya? Come out, now. I know you're here." He said.

He felt a shiver go down his spine and knew they were being watched. He turned slowly.

Two bright red eyes stared back at him through the darkness. As his eyes grew accustomed to the lack of light, he recognized her.

"Freya, what's wrong?" he asked cautiously. He took a tentative step forward and felt his foot hit something. He looked down.

"Ugh." He cringed. At his feet lay the still-twitching severed arm where it had fallen from Kayley. He backed up a step and looked back at Freya. As he did, he felt a slight breeze swirl around him and instinct told him what it was. He started to back away slowly. "Freya, listen to me." He said. She started to approach, arms and head hanging somewhat limp. Her pupils remained bright red.

"It won't work." Kayley whispered. "Mommy doesn't recognize us anymore."

"So I see." Kaiba replied. "You have vectors, can't you defend yourself?"

Kayley gave him a saddened look. "I only have three. Mommy has lots of them."

Kaiba remembered from Freya's record that she had over forty vectors. He glanced toward the door and started to walk backward toward it.

The gentle breeze grew into a ripping wind and he felt something slam into him, knocking him back several feet. His head cracked against the wall and he sank to the floor, stunned. Kayley tried to shake him to bring him back as Freya drew closer. The look in her eyes grew more menacing as she did.

"Wake up! Wake up!" Kayley cried. Kaiba groaned and shook his head. Remembering the danger they were in, He grabbed Kayley and bolted up again. He grabbed a chair from the table and hurled it at Freya. With a sharp crack, it snapped in half before it could even reach her—and it was a metal chair.

"Mommy's always been good at that." Kayley said quietly.

"Now you tell me." Kaiba growled. He groped behind him for the door and found the handle. The breeze was growing again and he whipped the door open and almost jumped down the stairs, making a dash for the car. He got in, threw Kayley onto the passenger seat, put it in drive and roared off. He felt the vibration as Freya hurled something at the car, putting a sharp dent into it. He was almost afraid of what that object might be. Ignoring it, he roared off, leaving Freya far behind. When he thought he'd gotten far enough away, he pulled into an empty store parking lot and idled the engine. He then turned to Kayley. "Are you still bleeding?" he asked. She sniffed and shook her head. "No. I tied a towel around it."

He first wondered where she'd gotten the towel from. Then he realized that her vectors might have grabbed it from somewhere before they'd left.

"I'll take you to the hospital." He said.

"No!" Kayley yelled.

"Why not?" he demanded. He could understand why a five or six year-old wouldn't want to go to a hospital, but Kayley needed immediate medical treatment.

"I'm a horns." She said. "Humans don't like horns."

That was when it hit him. Kayley was a Diclonius too. The hospital would definitely be suspicious. He thought for a minute.

"All right. I'll take you to the infirmary at KaibaCorp. I doubt they'll turn you in to the hospital, especially when their highly-paid jobs are on the line." He said.

With that, he pulled out of the parking lot and headed back to the headquarters.

He made a mental note to warn Emery as soon as possible.

A?N: Well, Freya snapped, as they predicted. But as always, there's some sort of trigger and they just don't know it yet. But one thing's for sure, something funny is going on here. Just read on to find out.


	14. Organization

A/N: This chapter is for my niece Morgan whose fifth birthday is today, June 27th

**A/N: **This chapter is for my niece Morgan whose fifth birthday is today, June 27th. She got an inflatable crayon easel and some plastic play kitchen utensils.

**Organization **

Kaiba waited outside the infirmary while the doctors worked on Kayley. As he expected, they didn't question her horns. He told them that he'd found her on the street after she'd been bitten by a dog.

"I believe it." The head practitioner had said. "Some dogs around here will eat anything they find on the roads. One of them must have eaten something with rabies. We'll give her a full check."

Meanwhile, Kaiba called Emery to let her know.

"Emery, I take it you haven't heard, yet." He said when she picked up.

"_Heard what?" _

"Freya regressed and attacked the school. She tore down half the structure and killed four people." He said. "I went to check on her. She ripped Kayley's arm off and nearly killed us. I don't know where she is now."

_"Hmm_." Emery said. "_That could be bad. Freya was never one to destroy buildings. If that was her, she could be in real trouble_."

"Why?" Kaiba asked. "If the police go after her, she'll kill them."

"_Well, it just so happens that a coworker who was fired last year for beating Freya and several others and was hired in the police headquarters somewhere near you. If he found out that Freya was doing this, he could reveal the one thing her vectors can't stop. And you know what that means_."

He covered his eyes. "Every police officer in the region will be armed to the teeth with silver bullets." He groaned in irritation. "Freya doesn't stand a chance."

"_What about Kayley? Is she all right?" _

"The doctors at my headquarters are checking her, now. She may need a prosthetic arm like Freya."

_"I just thought of something. She didn't touch you, did she?" _

"What?"

_"Her vectors. They didn't touch you, I hope." _

Kaiba thought back. Had they? "No. She threw me backwards, but doesn that count? Why?"

_"I mean, she didn't touch your skin with them, did she? This is very important. If her vectors came in contact with your skin or something, then you're in big trouble." _

"What?"

"_Diclonii have the natural ability to spread a sort of infection through their vectors. It doesn't necessarily affect the person it touches, more like it affects their descendants. Any children of a person who is touched by vectors will be born a Diclonius. The parents are simply carriers. I won't go into the genetically engineered Diclonii. Oh, I can never pronounce the name for them. Something starting with an 'S'. Number 7 was one of those. They have the ability to use their vectors even in a state of pain. I believe Freya is one as well." _

"No, she didn't touch me." He said. "And I'll try to keep it that way."

"_Good. Stay in touch. I'm going to go over to the apartment and see if I can't find Freya anywhere. If I do, perhaps I'll be able to calm her down." _

"Good luck."

He hung up just as the doctor came out with a clipboard in his hands. "Well, I see nothing else wrong with Kayley other than the missing arm. We've already cut off the main blood vessels and sewn it shut. I hope she's left-handed, because getting along without your hand is torture for some people."

He paused. "I am a little curious about those horns on her head, though."

"Don't be." Kaiba snapped a little more forcefully than he should have. "That girl is the daughter of an old friend. It's just a birth defect." He said.

"I do worry that maybe they're furthering her condition. We noticed that she shows signs of autism." The doctor said concernedly.

"Look, just forget about them. When will she be ready to go?"

"Well, we'd like to allow her some time to recuperate, and perhaps learn to function without her arm. I'd say maybe two or three days, at least."

"Make it an hour. She's left-handed and we don't have much time."

The doctor appeared surprised. But he did as he was told. "I'll have her ready. Just make sure she doesn't overdo her activities, or she'll break open the stitches."

Kaiba turned around as he left. Then, he pulled out his phone again, completely furious by who he was about to call.

"_Hello?" _Yugi's sleepy voice said on the other end. Kaiba remembered it was almost eleven at night, but this was important.

"Yugi, it's me." He said.

"_Kaiba?" _Yugi yawned. "_What's up?" _

"As much as I hate to admit it, I need your help."

"_With what?" _

"It's Freya." He said.

"_What?" _Yugi woke up fully. "_What happened?"_

"She snapped. I went over there to check on her and I found Kayley with one of her arms torn off. We barely got out of there. I think Freya took off somewhere and I've been told by her aunt that there's a police officer in this town who knows her weakness. She's in real trouble and I need your help finding her. Who knows how far she could have gotten by now."

"_Okay, I'll round up the gang and meet you and Kayley somewhere. Does your brother know about this?" _

"No, but I'll explain everything to him. I'm bringing Kayley too. From what I can remember Freya telling me years ago, Diclonii can sense each other. Kayley will be able to tell if we're near her or not."

"_Okay. Where should we meet you?"_

"At your place. I don't want Freya knowing we're going to hunt her down. I'll explain everything when you all get there."

"_Great. See you." _

Kaiba hung up and sighed, crossing his arms. He'd just dragged his biggest rival into this mess. Hopefully, it would all work out in the end.

/ooo/

The sound of happy laughter filled the darkened streets as a teenage couple walked home.

"Oh, Mark, this was the best birthday present ever. A pair of tickets to the big rock concert in town."

"Nothing's too good for my girl." Mark said. He looked up. "Hey, looks like we aren't the only ones out." He said, pointing to a dark figure approaching from the corner.

As they got closer, the girl stopped. "Oh, Mark, look! She's covered in blood!"

"Hey, you're right. Come on, lets' check and see if she's all right."

They rushed over to the figure who stopped and stared at them. The girl placed her hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay? You're all bloody. Were you in a fight?" she asked.

"_Despicable creatures._" The figure growled. The girl pulled back at the horrible quality of her voice. "Oh, she sounds terrible, too! Who's she talking about, I wonder?"

"I don't know." Mark replied. "Lets' get her to my car. We'll take her to the hos—"

With a snap and a flash, his head fell from his body in a spray of blood as he toppled to the ground. The girl started to shake and then turned wide eyes to the figure. That's when she noticed the horns on her head. Before she could say anything, a semi-transparent hand flew out from her back and fixed itself to the girl's forehead. Her eyes went dull and blank and she fell limp.

"_Bring the next generation to life."_ Freya hissed. She lifted the girl up with her vectors and set her a good distance away from the body of her boyfriend. She remained lifeless. Freya turned away from the bloody mess at her feet and walked back the way she came.

/ooo/

By the time Kaiba, Mokuba and Kayley arrived, Yugi had everyone waiting in his grandpa's living room. Solomon Moto seemed a bit confused as to why everyone had gathered this late at night. But Yugi explained that it was a serious problem Kaiba needed help with.

Joey was the one to answer the knock at the door. "Hey, Mokuba, Kayley." He said, deliberately ignoring Kaiba. As usual, Kaiba ignored Joey as well. Both kids stepped in and he followed. He looked at Yugi. "I apologize for troubling you this late." He said.

"Hey, it's fine. If it's about Freya, that's more important than sleep. What's going on?"

"Something happened?" Tristan asked. Kaiba nodded. "Freya's gone. But before she left, she attacked Kayley. Look."

Kayley held up the stump of her right arm, sewn shut by the doctors at the infirmary. Everyone gasped. "Freya did that to her?" Tea exclaimed. Kaiba nodded. "Yes. She also attacked me and we managed to escape from her. But in the process, she fled into the city. I've been in constant contact with her aunt, Emery Peyton. At the moment, she's gone to Freya's apartment to look for her."

"But why is it such a huge deal that she escaped? As long as we find her before she kills anyone, it's all right." Joey said. They all threw him irritated looks.

"There's a very serious reason why we have to find her before the police do." Kaiba said gravely. "Freya has one weakness when it comes to ammunition. She told me herself that she can't stop a silver bullet and Emery told me that there's one officer in the union who knows about that. He was fired for unnecessarily abusing Freya and several others at the facility. He knows how to stop her. If he finds out it's her, he'll alert every officer in the city and they'll go after her with enough silver bullets to stock an army."

Everyone exchanged nervous glances. "That's bad." Tea said.

"There's a little more." Kaiba continued. "I've been warned about this, and since it's best we all stay neutral during this, it's best you all know it, too."

"Hey, we are by no means neutral, Kaiba!" Joey snapped.

"Wheeler, I may hate you, but I also know that no one here is in any position to fly solo. We're not talking about Pegasus, we're talking about someone who could rip you in two without a thought. She's easily capable of destroying the city by herself. She destroyed half the school earlier today and killed four people in the process."

Here, Joey blinked and folded his arms. "All right, you have a point. But this truce only lasts until Freya's back to normal. Got that?" he grumbled.

"Anyway, I have to warn you about some things." Kaiba said. "In case you don't remember, Freya's got over forty vectors and a range of twenty-three meters. That's about seventy-five feet. If you stay that far away from her, you're safe. Any closer, and she's capable of ripping you apart. If worst comes to worst and we all have to resort to some form of violence to take her down, go for her horns. They each control half the amount of vectors she has. If you take one out, you'll force twenty-some of her vectors to go dormant. If you recall, her arms are prosthetics so they may detach. If they do, take them. That may provide an advantage. But the most important warning is this: don't let her vectors come in contact with your skin." He said with emphasis.

"Why?" Tristan asked.

"If they should touch any part of your body, she'll pass on a kind of infection. It won't affect you, but any of your descendants will be born as Diclonii. And it seems they're getting stronger with each generation. So avoid getting touched by them as best as you can." He concluded.

"Okay, now that we've got precautions down, how do we find her?"

"I can find mommy." Kayley piped up. "I can sense her. She's a horns like me." She giggled.

"I still can't believe that Freya tore her arm off." Tristan said.

"Kayley, are you sure it's safe for you to go look for her?" Tea asked. "I mean, Freya's a lot stronger than you are."

"Yep!" Kayley exclaimed.

Yugi sighed. "Okay, everyone. I guess this is it. We have to find Freya before the police do. How should we do this?"

"We'd cover more ground if we split into groups." Kaiba said.

"Is it also safer that way?" Tristan asked.

"No. Freya's vectors can kill more than one person at a time."

"Okay," Joey said. "So who's in what group?"

"How about we divide so everyone has equal group strength." Yugi suggested. He paused to think. "Okay. There's seven of us, not including my grandpa, that's if he wants to go."

"I'd better hold down the fort in case you need to come back right away. I don't think your friend has been here before." Mr. Moto said. He said it quiet seriously, so they knew he wasn't joking and trying to weasel out. Yugi nodded.

"Okay, one of the groups is going to have an extra person."

"I have an idea." Mokuba said. "I brought the laptop with me. It's in the car. I can stay here and monitor you guys as you go."

"Great. That makes an even six. Okay. We also need to organize this so there won't be any unnecessary arguments. So I'll go with Kaiba and Kayley. Joey, Tristan and Tea, you guys will be in the other group."

"Okay." Tea said. "And we can communicate by cell phone. I have mine. And I'm guessing that out of your group, Kaiba's the only one who has one."

"All right. Tea, hand your cell phone to him so he can input his number and we can all keep in touch."

She gave him the phone and looked back at Yugi while Kaiba entered the number. He gave it back to her. "If anyone should find anything, get to a safe spot and call the other group immediately. It doesn't matter whether you get her or not, the priority is locating her. Got it?" Kaiba said.

"We'll meet back here in three hours." Yugi announced. "We've got a lot of ground to cover. And remember, many lives are depending on us to find Freya before she does any damage. And in case we're too late…." He paused and sighed. "Call an emergency number and then leave the scene. Understand?"

"Too late for what?" Joey asked. Kaiba shook his head and groaned. "In case anyone of us finds a mangled body in the streets." He snapped. Joey gulped. "Oh." He said. "I gotcha."

They headed outside. "We'll take the west end of town." Yugi said. "You guys search the east. And whatever you do, be careful."

"Right." Tristan said. "Later!"

As Tea, Joey and Tristan headed off, Yugi turned to Kayley and Kaiba. "Well, I guess we'd better go too."

"Right."

"I'll find mommy!" Kayley said. She closed her eyes and clenched her fists. "I can sense her. She's somewhere nearby."

"Where?" Yugi asked. Kayley heaved a sigh. "I don't know." She whined.

Kaiba rolled his eyes. "Never mind. Lets' go."

With that, they started off.

A/N: Okay, so this chapter basically sums up how serious the situation is. And a good example is what Freya did to that couple. So, what do you think's gonna happen??


	15. Hunt

A/N: Sorry I haven't updated

**A/N:** Sorry I haven't updated. I've been in Florida for the past week and we rented this house thingie. It didn't have any internet whatsoever and I spent three whole days trying to find a connection. Anyway, I'm actually sitting next to my suitcase the night before we leave as we speak, I just won't be able to update until I get a connection.

**Hunt**

The streets were eerily quiet at midnight and Kayley clung to Kaiba's hand as she walked with them.

"She sure trusts you, Kaiba." Yugi remarked, looking at Kayley. Kaiba glanced down at her. "She's traumatized." He said. He reached down and picked her up. She immediately snuggled into his chest and closed her eyes.

"That's cute." Yugi said. Kaiba sighed. "It's only temporary." He said. "Don't go to sleep, Kayley, we need you."

"I'm scared of the dark." She whimpered. That explained why she closed her eyes.

The streetlights were on and occasionally a car would pass. Whenever they passed a darkened alley, Kaiba would toss a stone to its entrance, figuring that Freya would strike out of reflex. So far, nothing.

As they turned a corner, they stopped and stared.

"Uh, Kaiba?" Yugi said.

"Yeah?"

"I think Freya's been here."

"You think?" Kaiba snapped.

Before them lay the bloodied remains of a teenage boy, his severed head lying a few feet away. It was a grisly sight; his tongue lolled out and his eyes rolled back into his head. Yugi sighed. "Should we call someone?"

"Lets' make sure there's no one else, here." Kaiba said, staring at the body.

"How can you be sure?" Yugi asked. Kaiba shifted Kayley to his other arm and pointed. "I can see the remains of a corsage. This guy might have been on a date. If he was, there might be another victim here."

They split up and checked both sides of the street for a possible second victim. It was Yugi who hit the mark. "Kaiba, I found her!" he called.

It was a young girl, about fifteen. She was lying on the ground with her eyes wide open. "She's still breathing." Yugi said. "Freya must have missed her."

"Or worse." Kaiba said. "Spared her."

"Right. She could have touched her with her vectors. We should probably call someone."

Kaiba pulled out his cell phone, set Kayley down and covered his mouth with the collar of his coat. "Hello, I'd like to report an attack." He said, his voice muffled. "One boy, decapitated and one girl, out cold. On the corner of West and Secor."

He hung up before they could trace his call. He shoved the phone back into his pocket and snatched Kayley up. "Lets' go. We need to be out of sight when they get here." He said. They hurried away as the sirens blared in the distance.

/ooo/

Tea, Tristan and Joey slowly made their way along the pavement, keeping sharp eyes out for anything out of the norm. Occasionally, Tea would call back to Yugi's grandpa's to ask Mokuba for updates.

"_Nothing yet. Those tracking pins I gave you guys before you left are showing you walking along main. Our satellite will pick up anyone else around you."_

Tea hated the pins. Mokuba had given to them at the last possible second and they looked like silver beetles sitting on their shirts.

"Thanks, Mokuba. We're still looking." Tea said. She hung up and sighed. "I sure hope we can find her soon."

"Yeah." Said Joey. " Do you think she'll recognize us?" he asked Tristan. Tristan didn't reply. They both turned around. "Tristan? What's wrong?" Tea asked. He was frozen in place, his eyes crossed in fear. "To answer your question, Joey," he squeaked. "I don't think she'll recognize us."

"Why do you say that?" Tea asked him.

"Because she's got my throat!" Tristan gasped. He was suddenly lifted into the air.

"Tristan!"

Joey ran forward and grabbed his leg to try to pull him down. Tea hurried around and looked into the alley behind them. "Freya, put him down!" she called.

"Who're you calling Freya?"

Tea blinked in surprise. " Rumi?" she said.

The Diclonius stepped out into the streetlight, her arms folded. "Smart girl, you remembered me. What are you guys doing out here?"

She dropped Tristan hard.

"We'd like to ask you the same thing." Joey said irritably.

"I was released once more to search for Freya after she escaped. I've managed to shake the guards tailing me so I can search more freely. Now, before I tear your throats out, tell me. Where is Freya?"

"We don't know, Rumi. We're looking for her ourselves." Tea said. "She went crazy and attacked her own daughter. She's missing."

Here, Rumi's face changed to concern. "She attacked number 14?" she said. Joey, Tristan and Tea all exchanged glances. "Kayley has a number?"

"Of course. We've all got one. Kayley and one other infant Diclonius all received numbers because they lived. Kayley only got one by default because Freya stole her."

"But what about you?" Tea asked her. "Why are you so obsessed over finding Freya?"

Rumi scrunched her face up like she wanted to answer. "None of your business. Now if I spare you, will you help me find her?"

"Why should we believe you, you little squirt?" Joey snapped, poking her head. Rumi slapped his hand away. "Because I can protect you from Freya should we find her. You have my word that I won't kill you…now."

"We'll have to settle for that." Tea said. "Rumi, we're all concerned about Freya. There's an officer in the city who knows her weakness and if he finds out it's her, she's in trouble."

"I know. A silver bullet. That's my weakness too."

"Huh?" Tristan and Joey both said. "Why's that?"

"Freya's my half-sister. The people at the facility never told me, but I knew it the minute I first laid eyes on Freya."

"If that's the case, then why'd you tear her arms off?" Tea exclaimed. "Does Freya even know?"

"Doubt it. In the meantime, it's dangerous to stay in one place too long. I heard that idiot Dr. Kelso talking about releasing the second most dangerous Diclonius in the facility to go after her."

"The second most dangerous?" Tea said. "Isn't that you?"

"No, I'm third. Dy is second. Wanna know who he is?"

They exchanged glances warily. Rumi smirked. "He's the only male Diclonius to have ever survived in true form."

/ooo/

Emery stepped inside the ruined apartment. There was blood all over the ground where Kayley had walked after her arm was taken.

"Oh, Freya. This is horrible. How could you do this to her?"

Emery carefully made her way through the area, being wary in case Freya remained within. "I sure hope that boy can help her." She murmured.

There was nothing within the apartment as Emery soon discovered. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed his number.

"It's me." She said. "I've checked through the apartment. There's no sign of her."

"_We found something down here." _He said.

"What?"

"_We split into groups and I've got Kayley with me. We found the body of a teenage boy and an unconscious girl some twenty feet away. We think she might be infected with the Diclonius virus." _

"That's bad. But there's no sign of Freya?"

"_Hang on, I've got another call coming through. It's the others." _

Kaiba switched to the other line. "What is it?"

"_Kaiba, it's Tea, Joey and Tristan. We found something by the wharf. It's Rumi." _

"What?"

"_She attacked Tristan, but we persuaded her to help us. She says that they might be planning on releasing a more powerful Diclonius to locate Freya." _

"Another Diclonius?"

_"Yeah. Rumi says his name is Dy…she says he's known as number 12."_

"It's a male Diclonius?"

_"Yeah. But she doesn't know anything else. We'll let you know if we find anything." _

"Good."

He switched back to Emery. "Bad news. Tea told me that they found Rumi. She says that they're planning to release a male Diclonius known as number 12 to find Freya."

"_No way! They can't do that! Dy is extremely unstable, even more so than Freya!"_

"How unstable?"

_"They have to keep him blindfolded."_

Kaiba grimaced. "What can he do?"

_"Well, he's the only recorded male Diclonius to have actually survived to adulthood. He's got a range that's even longer than Freya's, though he only has four vectors. His range is thirty meters." _

"That's almost a hundred feet!" Kaiba exclaimed.

"_Yes. When he attacks, he releases all four vectors to rend the victim to pieces. He's a true match for Freya. I can honestly say I can't predict an outcome to their battle." _

Kaiba sighed. "What does he look like?"

_"Males generally have smaller horns than the females as far as we know. For some reason, male Diclonii are less likely to survive than females, so we don't know if they share the same features. The typical Diclonius has bright or faded pink or red hair and matching eyes. I suspect he might be the same. I've never actually seen Dy, but I've spoken with him through the speakers before they were forced to put him into a powerful sleep. If they release him, they're pretty much detonating the bomb that will wipe out the human race. If in the event that he and Freya meet up, their battle may go on for some time. They could end up causing devastating damage in the process." _

"So we just have to find Freya before Dy and the police do." Kaiba said.

_"Yes. I'll do what I can from here to prevent Dy's release. In the meantime, you continue to search for Freya." _

"Right."

Kaiba hung up and sighed. "This is going from bad to worse, Yugi." He mumbled.

"How so? What happened?"

"They're releasing the only Diclonius who can stand up to Freya and have any chance of surviving."

"Who is it?"

"His name is Dy. He's known as number 12. From what Emery says, he may be difficult to recognize. We've got to find Freya and fast."

/ooo/

Freya stood staring sullenly out at the sea, glaring at the distant island that had once been her prison. She could sense his presence as he awoke from his cryogenic sleep.

"So you wish to fight me, do you?" she muttered.

_Yes._

"Well, you'll have to find me, first."

_Shouldn't be too hard._

"Don't bet on it. I'll tear you to pieces."

_We'll see._

Suddenly angered, Freya whirled and stalked off, preparing for the fight of her life against the Diclonius to whom she refused life.

A/N: Dy was inspired by a very special friend of mine. She wanted a male Diclonius, so I gave her one. I know there's only two of them in the anime and there's controversy as to whether they're watered down Diclonii or simply victims of unrelated mutations. In any case, Thanks to my special friend (PLEASE FORGIVE ME SPECIAL FRIEND BUT I CAN'T REMEMBER YOUR PENNAME AT THE MOMENT!! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!!) There will be a Diclonius who somewhat matches the characteristics of the norm. Enjoy.


	16. Dy

A/N: Sorry for the late update A/N: Sorry for the late update. I'm in Washington now, but that means I'm that much closer to the 'Arrangements' files. Please, to those of you who are still with me, just wait a little bit longer. I'm going to get the story today and I'll make sure of it. Just wait a little bit longer and I'll update it. Dy

From within his frozen chamber, as his body began to thaw, his mind grew clearer and he sensed her presence, her very thoughts permeating his. He grinned.

_So you wish to fight me, do you?_

"Yes." He mumbled.

_Well, you'll have to find me, first._

"Shouldn't be too hard."

_Don't bet on it. I'll tear you to pieces. _

"We'll see."

She disappeared then and his eyes narrowed. "It's about time you reappeared, mother." He muttered.

/ooo/

Emery sat outside on the curb and sighed. There was something about Dy that she'd learned a long time ago that was extremely important to the situation at hand. But for the life of her, she couldn't remember it.

"Ugh! Why didn't I write it down, or something?" she cried, burying her head in her hands.

Her eyes went wide in terror suddenly as she heard faint, slow footsteps moving steadily toward her. She cautiously peeked out from beneath her arm and gasped. Without thinking, she jumped up. "Freya!" she cried.

The Diclonius looked up with a snap, her eyes blazing. Emery screamed and shielded her face with her arms as over twenty vectors soared past her at light speed, it seemed. Several large chunks of hair were torn out and she was thrown roughly backward into the wall behind her. She crumpled to the ground and opened one eye at Freya who approached with an ominous air. Emery gasped. "No, Freya, it's me! Your mother!"

"_My mother is dead."_

Emery felt her heart jolt suddenly. _No! It can't be! _

_That first night she knew, as she walked home from the store and took a detour to visit her sister, she saw them. The police cars lined up out front and a bloody, headless body in the yard. She gasped in horror as she recognized the man's shirt as Robert's. She screamed shrilly and dropped her bags, tearing through the police tape and toward the house. She felt her arms being pulled back forcefully by the men, but with extreme effort, somehow she made it past them and into the house. _

_"Emily! Emily!" she remembered screaming. Within minutes of rushing frantically through her sister's home, she discovered Emily's body, torn clean in half and lying in a pool of her own blood. Her lifeless eyes stared up at her, forever frozen in a look of surprise and terror. She covered her mouth and her eyes fell on the empty crib where her little niece spent her nights in sweet dreaming. She was nowhere to be found, but tiny little footprints led out of the room, trailing Emily's blood in their wake. _

_It wasn't long after that that little Freya was discovered rifling through a garbage can several blocks away. She had been the one to stumble across her and for a moment, the child stared at her with doubt. Then, with a cry, she threw herself at her, calling her mom and sobbing hysterically. She knew then that Freya had been confused by her similar appearance to Emily and believed her to be her mother. _

But now….

Emery shook her head violently. "No, please, Freya, I am your mother! You must listen to me!"

"_Silence!"_

Emery at once fell quiet, for the first time, frightened of the Diclonius she'd known all her life. "Freya, what happened to you?" she whispered.

"_I killed my mother and father. You aren't my mother, so don't lie to me!" _

Emery choked back a sob. "Forgive me, Freya. You are correct…I'm not your mother, I'm your aunt and your mother's twin sister! But all my life, I loved you as though you were my own! I defended you from director Kasaki! I visited you, I fed you! I took care of you when you were weak! I protected you from the euthanasia ward when they wanted to kill you! At one point, they wanted to amputate your horns and destroy your vectors! Destroy who you are! I stopped them! Freya, you must believe me! Please!"

She fell to her knees, shaking badly and sobbing. "I want to help you, Freya!" she cried. "Please! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

All this time, Freya glared down at her, expressionless. _"You are truly foolish to think that you can sway me with simple human emotions. I'm not like you. I'm not human. I am Diclonius and I am the one Chosen to see to it that we dominate over our enemies." _

"Freya, listen to me, I beg of you! Not all humans are bad! You were lucky to have people around to love you! Think of Rumi. Think of the horrible life she had! Do you know who she is to you? Do you know who she is?"

_"What are you saying?" _

Emery sighed shakily. "I kept many things from you in an attempt to prevent what you're doing now. This was one of them. Freya, Rumi is your half sister, my sister's other daughter by accident. The two of you are only a year apart, but her growth was stunted by substances my sister was using at the time. Rumi will forever look thirteen because of it. In her own way, she cares about you, too, Freya! She wants your respect and she respects you! And look at the humans whose lives you touched!"

Freya's eyes narrowed. Her vectors flew out and grasped Emery by the throat, raising her up and cutting off her air. "_Such as…?" _

"S-Seto Kaiba…his b-brother!" Emery gasped. "His…other friends! The people…you performed to…your true…mother and…me!"

Emery paused to struggle for a breath. "All…of us…Freya! Please!"

She fell to the ground suddenly, coughing and gasping for air. She looked up at Freya who was now standing in front of her, her head bowed. "_They are my enemies." _

"No, they are your friends. You were just like this when you escaped eight years ago. You met those brothers and became their friend. I'd often heard you mention their names in your sleep. You would even cry on occasion. You felt remorse for causing them pain. You felt anguish for giving them such wretched memories while trying to protect them. I believe the only reason you endured the second time is because she felt the urge to apologize for what you'd done. And that same boy, now grown, is right now combing the city looking for you. He cares about you, Freya." Emery said, desperately trying to reach Freya's guarded heart. "He wants to find you first so he can protect you from the threats toward you. He's your friend, Freya and he cares for you. He wants to be there for you, just like a friend should be."

She paused and slowly stood up. Freya followed her with her eyes, but didn't move. "And." Emery continued. "I care for you. I care so much, it breaks my heart just to look at you. To see how beautiful you've become and to see my sister lingering in your face. From the moment I saw you in her arms and recognized you as a Diclonius, I knew that I had to do all I could to protect you from the real monsters; the men and women at the facility who see you as a mutant."

She smiled. "In scientific terms, you are, but in spiritual terms, you're my precious, precious niece and the only living reminder of my beloved sister. To me, you'll always be my sweet, adorable daughter with the cute horns who clung to the hem of my skirt every time I came to visit you."

Freya remained silent, her eyes invisible beneath her thick hair. Finally, she took a breath. "_You think my horns are…cute?"_

"What?" Emery breathed. Freya looked up and Emery was shocked to see tears welling up in her eyes. "_They're ugly!"_ she yelled in that horrible raspy voice.

Emery took a risk and enveloped the girl in her arms, stroking her hair lovingly. "No, they aren't." she whispered. "I think they're adorable. They look like little cat-ears."

"_But…you're my enemy! I have to kill you!"_ Freya protested. But she'd begun to cry bitterly at the same time. Emery just hugged her tighter. "I'm not your enemy, Freya. We aren't so different, you know. We have two eyes, two ears, a nose, hands, feet, faces, you name it. We are the same, Freya."

Freya pulled away, staring at her with a look of extreme sadness. "_How can you say that?"_ she muttered. Her voice was starting to go back to normal. "_How can you say we aren't different? I was born to kill humans and you were born to protect humans from my kind!"_

Emery took her face lightly into her hands and gazed gently into her eyes. "Freya, you're wrong. I was born to protect you, to raise you with the love and care you wouldn't have gotten had I not stepped in. The Diclonii are vengeful toward humans because they fear us. Humans give them nothing but pain, suffering and coldness. A human touch can be so warm and most Diclonii never feel it. All they feel is the sting of rejection and the cold steel chains that hold them down. If there were more and better ideas out there, perhaps the humans and Diclonii could coexist peacefully in this world."

Freya looked away thoughtfully. "Is…Is such a thing even possible?" she wondered aloud. Emery nodded. "If you wish to make it possible, let it be so." She said with an encouraging smile.

Freya said nothing.

/ooo/

With a sharp crack, the ice surrounding the Diclonius shattered and he fell to the floor in a heap, shivering. He slowly sat up and took in his surroundings. He spotted two technicians and instantly released his four vectors at them. He snarled in rage when he saw they were out of his range.

"Cowards!" he yelled. He tried to stand up, but his feet were still chained in place atop the platform he'd been frozen on. One of the technicians stepped forward, barely out of his range. She adjusted her glasses and scowled. "Well, if it isn't the freak, Dy. The only surviving male Diclonius ever recorded. How was your three-year-long sleep?"

Dy scowled. "Fine. What sounds good to you? Decapitation, disembowelment or drawn and quartered?" he snapped. Marian didn't budge. "You're all talk. We could detect your brainwaves moving rapidly on our monitors. You were communicating with her, weren't you?"

Dy smirked. "So what if I was? She abandoned me, so I have no choice but to kill her."

Marian scoffed at him as she turned to the computer screen behind her. "Number 12, you are aware that up until the day she took that infant, she didn't even know you existed, right?"

"Of course she knew!" Dy yelled. "And she took that runt instead of me! So now, I want to make her pay for leaving me!"

"Would you shut the hell up?" Marian snapped. "Number 32 isn't your mother, we simply used her DNA to create you as a sort of clone for her. That way, while she was kept in confinement, we could test you, her clone, to discover her weaknesses and kill her."

Dy's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I'm still a part of her and I want revenge for her abandoning me for that squirt she took instead." He growled.

"Well, if you cooperate with us, you'll get the chance. Will you work with us to find her? She's yours to kill however you please."

Dy frowned. "Whatever. Just get these blasted chains off of me." He snarled. The other technician moved forward to release him. As he got close enough, Dy grinned suddenly and with a scream, the technician's body exploded in a cloud of blood and the various pieces littered the floor all around the Diclonius. Marian sighed in exasperation. "What was that for?" she grumbled, as though she hadn't just witnessed a gory murder. Dy snorted. "You think I'm gonna let a simpleton like that free me? I want you to throw me the key so I can do it myself."

"Fine. Just shut up, already." Marian growled. "Now I know why they froze you to begin with." She mumbled, tossing the key at him.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that." Dy snapped as he unlocked the chains around his limbs. He stood up and stretched. "That feels good. Now, when do I get to hunt her down?"

"Not yet. We still have to get you ready for transport and then drop you off in an area where we believe she is. It's up to you from there."

/ooo/

Kayley gasped suddenly and started to cry. Kaiba and Yugi both looked at her curiously. "What's wrong, Kayley?" Yugi asked. "Is your arm hurting you?"

"N-No! He's c-coming!" Kayley whimpered. She curled into a tight ball in Kaiba's arms and shook violently.

"Kayley, who's coming?" Kaiba asked.

"Dy! He's coming!"

Kaiba's eyes widened. "She can sense him. I forgot. Kayley, where is he now?"

"On the island. He's coming! He wants to kill mommy!"

"Freya!" Yugi exclaimed. "Now we have to look faster than ever!"

"Right. Lets' go." Kaiba said.

/ooo/

Rumi paused suddenly and stared into space, a terrified look in her eyes. "Oh no." she whispered.

"Rumi, what's wrong?" Tea asked concernedly.

"I don't believe it. They did it. They really did it. They released number 12."

"How do you know?" Tristan asked in wonder.

"I can sense him. He's awoken from his sleep. They defrosted him and they're going to release him into the city to find Freya. We have to hurry if we want to find her first!"

A/N: The clock is ticking down and Freya is being hunted all over the city. So, who do you think will find her first? The police with their special member who knows her weakness? Dy after being released from a cryogenic sleep and believes Freya to be his mother? Kaiba, searching for his long lost childhood friend? Or Rumi, looking for her half-sister whose respect she wants more than anything? Only I know the answer to this, and many other questions.


	17. Surrounded

A/N: Okay, as for the Arrangement files, I am trying to work on them, but for some reason, I can't leave this story

A/N: Okay, as for the Arrangement files, I am trying to work on them, but for some reason, I can't leave this story. So since this one is almost done anyway, I'll do what I can for the other one in the meantime and keep updating this one. Please be patient with me.

**Surrounded**

Dy's only objective seemed to be getting revenge on Freya for abandoning him. Marian figured that she could release him in Freya's general vicinity of the city without endangering too many lives. As the chopper flew toward Domino, she glanced at the Diclonius calmly sitting in the seat, albeit chained in fourteen different places and blindfolded. She had to admit, despite the horns protruding from his temples, he was a rather handsome specimen. Unlike the female Diclonii the facilities around the world commonly dealt with, Dy showed signs of revealing that males still possessed secrets that would take years to unravel. For instance, within hours of being released, she'd gone to fetch him and found one of his tiny horns lying cracked on the floor. Now, three hours later, a new, somewhat longer one could be seen rapidly taking its place. It would seem that males shed their horns as they grew, while females' horns simply grew along with them. Males' horns appeared to be like snakes and shed their outer coating every so often to allow for new growth. But unlike the fearsome reptiles, this growth could take place in a matter of hours. The most astounding fact was that all four of his vectors could be used while one of his horns had been shed, as that fact he'd been determined to prove after it happened. So while females' horns controlled the use of the vectors, males' horns served a different purpose. Marian doubted that what controlled their vectors would remain a mystery until more males could be isolated for study. The only thing she was sure of was that the shedding took place regularly, but the horns matured at a drastically slower rate than those of females. Dy's new horn was barely bigger than the other one.

The horns were just a minor difference. While most females generally bore the bright red or pinkish hair, Dy's hair, which had been red during his cryogenic sleep, had faded to a dark navy blue. His eyes were the same color.

It was true. Male Diclonii were much more mysterious than their female counterparts.

"Are we almost there?" Dy complained, shifting in his bindings.

"About ten minutes. Now, you know what you have to do?"

"Yeah, yeah." He grumbled. "Find Freya, kill Freya and then come back to the pier so I can be taken back to the facility. I get it. Sheesh."

He growled to himself. "Why the heck did you put me in this stupid sweater? I feel like I've got lice!"

Marian had been forced to give him some of her old clothes due to his bony appearance. He now wore her old maroon sweater and a pair of faded blue jeans.

And it was clear he was none too happy about it.

"Because it's the only thing I could give you on such short notice." Marian snapped at him.

"Oh for crying out loud, just because I'm the only recorded surviving male Diclonius does NOT mean that you never have mens' clothes lying around!"

With that, he yelled in frustration and yanked at the sweater, rattling his chains. Marian sighed as she heard a few seams rip. She'd never liked that sweater much anyway.

/ooo/

Kayley sat huddled against the wall of a building, refusing to budge. "No." she said in response to Yugi's coaxing. "I'm not moving. I'm going to wait for mommy."

"Look, kid, you said yourself that this number 12 Diclonius is coming after Freya. If he finds you first, he may kill you."

"I don't care."

With that, she turned and scampered into the alley behind them, disappearing in the darkness. Kaiba sighed irritably. "Now what? We can't just leave her here."

"No, but if she refuses to go any further, we can't force her, either." Yugi said. He frowned in thought. "This is really my first life or death situation, so I'm a little stumped."

"Please tell me you're being sarcastic." Kaiba grumbled. He carefully made his way into the alley to look for Kayley. A gentle breeze blew past him and he felt the wind knocked from his lungs as he was thrown forcefully out, landing hard in the street.

"Go away!" Kayley yelled. Kaiba picked himself up, growling. "Kayley, this is getting ridiculous." He snapped. "If you want to find Freya, you need to come out."

"No."

"Kayley." Kaiba said again.

"No!"

"Kayley, listen." He tried. He yelled as he was lifted off the ground suddenly and shaken around roughly. He shook his head to get his bearings.

"No." she said with emphasis. Yugi sighed. "Kayley, we want to help find Freya as much as you do. I doubt number 12 is even around here."

"He's at the water." She said.

Yugi and Kaiba both gasped. "They brought him here that quickly?" Kaiba exclaimed. Kayley dropped him all of a sudden and he crumpled to the ground, stunned. Yugi shook his head. "She's a tad stubborn." He said, watching Kaiba stand up shakily.

"You think?" Kaiba grumbled. He sighed. "Fine, Kayley, we're leaving."

He nodded at Yugi and started to walk away.

"You're really leaving her here?" Yugi asked quietly.

"Shh. Kayley's a little kid. She won't be able to stand the thought of abandonment, Diclonius or not." He said.

Five minutes later, they heard a screaming wail and Kaiba turned just in time to get knocked down flat on his back with Kayley perched on his chest, tiny fists clasping the collar of his coat and shaking him hard.

"I wanna go, too! Don't leave me! I want mommy! I want mommy!" she yelled.

"Wow. You were right." Yugi said, arms crossed as he watched Kaiba shove Kayley away and get up off the street for the third time that night. He picked her up and she sighed, snuggling against him. "Thank you, daddy."

Both Yugi and Kaiba froze.

"What did she just call me?"

/ooo/

Emery waited at the dock when the chopper landed, standing firm and still despite the harsh winds the blades produced. When Marian exited with Dy, she spotted Emery and scowled. "Emery. What are you doing here? I thought you'd gone to England to monitor a stream of Diclonius infants being born there?"

"The job was reassigned to Yoshiko Tono. I want to know what you're doing with Dy, here."

"He is called number 12, Emery," Marian said, straightening her glasses. "And I'll thank you not to interfere. The director has given me permission to release number 12 in order to apprehend number 32, who thanks to your negligence, is still at large in a heavily populated area."

"Freya is my niece. I happen to be aware of her whereabouts and I'm happy to inform you that she is in a perfectly harmless state as we speak."

"You killed her?" Marian asked, tilting her head doubtfully. Emery rolled her eyes. "Of course not. She has returned from her regressive state and is in hiding. Of that, I am not sure. Heck, even if I was, I wouldn't tell you."

"No need." Dy said. The technicians had removed his chains before his landing. "She's quite near."

Emery's eyes widened in alarm.

Suddenly, Dy grinned and broke away from Marian, making a dash toward a large storeroom on the docks.

"Dy, stop!" Emery cried. But it was too late.

Dy screamed as half the concrete structure collapsed on top of him, bringing to rest of it down as it fell, hiding the Diclonius from view and sending a cloud of dust high into the air.

"Dy!" Emery cried, rushing forward. "Dy, are you all right?"

"Mother, back away!"

Emery whirled.

"Freya!"

/ooo/

Several blocks away, a large task force was gathering. All the men wore heavily armed suits and tinted helmets. They all carried high-powered machine guns. One officer stepped forward and held up a picture.

"Men, I've warned people all over the city about this girl. It's high time she's taken care of once and for all!"

The picture showed a girl with long black hair and little temporal horns growing from her skull. "This is number 32, or Freya. I used to work for the facility that held her captive, but they fired me for being too rough with her exercises." He snapped, crumpling the paper in his hand. "You think this is cruel? You think I was inhumane? I'll have you know, men, this girl and all others like her ain't human! They kill humans without a thought or remorse! We're flies to them! Itty bitty flies! Worthless! Pesky! But when we gather, we can create a force even the Diclonii can't deal with! We're going to fight back!"

He grinned. "Before you received your weapons, I had our weapons chief reload all of your guns with special, high-quality silver bullets. You may be asking why. Well, it just so happens that this particular Diclonius cannot stop a silver bullet. Now, one might not kill her. But lets' see her take on two, or ten, or a hundred, or a thousand! And why stop there? We'll see to it that she takes her last breath at the hands of justice and humanity! Who's with me?!"

The entire crowd of officers bellowed in eager response.

"Excellent! Now, comb the entire of Domino city! Leave no alleyway untouched, no stone unturned! Kill anyone who stands in your way! This reign of terror ends tonight!"

With that, they dispersed, leaving the vengeful captain behind to quickly savor his impending victory.

/ooo/

Kaiba and Yugi both whirled in the direction of the commotion, just a block away.

"Mommy!" Kayley cried, squirming away from Kaiba and taking off into the darkness. Kaiba had no time to ponder over what Kayley had addressed him as or why.

"Kayley!" He yelled.

Minutes later, they arrived at the wharf and saw Kayley, her single arm grasping Freya's hand. "Mommy! Mommy, are you okay?" she yelled.

No one seemed to notice, the angry Diclonius unburying himself from the rubble mere meters away.

/ooo/

"Hey, did you hear that?" Joey exclaimed when they heard the explosion.

"It's Freya and Dy. It seems we're too late." Rumi muttered. "Dy got to her first, so it's up to us to stop the police force from finding her."

At that moment, Tea's cell phone started ringing. She answered it.

"Kaiba, where are you guys? What's going on?" she asked.

"_It's bad here. We're at the wharf. Freya's destroyed a boathouse and Emery's here, too. I'm too far away to tell, but I think Freya's back to normal." _

"That's a relief. But what's happening? Why'd she destroy a boathouse?"

"_I don't know. I—wait. Hold on. It's Dy! He's just come out from under the wreckage. Look, he looks mad. You'd better get Rumi over here as soon as possible. There might be a battle." _

"We'll do that."

Tea hung up and turned to the guys. "They found Freya, but Rumi was right. Dy's there too. We have to get there fast so Rumi can help."

"They're not far from here!" Rumi cried. "Hurry! We have to get over there!"

"But what about the police?" Joey yelled.

"Screw the police! I'll kill 'em all before they have a chance to shoot. Lets' go! Move it or lose it!"

Tristan and Joey exchanged glances. "Sure." Tristan said.

A/N: I wanted some family type fluff in this chapter and Kayley is just cute that way. She's depending on Kaiba to take care of her. That's the only reason behind her calling him her dad. He's become a father figure in a short time because she's so young. I sort of figured that a Diclonius born with autism wouldn't immediately consider even their parental figures a threat. You know?


	18. Lucy

A/N: This chapter is not as it seems, despite the name

**A/N: **This chapter is not as it seems, despite the name. As for this chapter, well, all I can say is that the story is rapidly approaching a natural end.

**Lucy**

Dy glared at Kayley and then at Freya as she knelt down in front of the girl. He was seething with rage as he watched Freya push Kayley's hair back behind her ears. "What did she call you?" he yelled. Freya looked up. She stood up and pushed Kayley behind her. "She called me her mother. Got a problem with that?"

"Yeah! She has no right to call you her mother!" Dy bellowed. Freya scowled. "Just what does it matter to you?"

Emery, watching from behind a stack of crates where Freya had pushed her during the commotion, sighed. Apparently, Freya didn't know that Dy was created from her and believed her to be his mother.

Dy stood up fully. "I won't let you leave here alive." He hissed. The ground around him exploded as he launched himself into the air, hurtling toward her. Freya didn't budge. Her eyes narrowed and she released ten of her vectors, catching his four and stopping his fall eight feet away or so. Dy struggled to free himself and his vectors from her grip. It was then that Emery realized that his cryogenic sleep had caused him to lose much of his strength. He had been a sure match against Freya before. But now, she wasn't sure.

"Let me go! Let me go, damn it!" Dy yelled, thrashing about in the air. Freya didn't release him. "So you're the only living male Diclonius." She said. "I have to say, you're interesting."

"Is that all you have to say to me?" he snapped. "Release me!"

"Why?" Freya asked. "So you can kill me and my daughter?"

"No! So I can get revenge on you for leaving me!" Dy yelled at her.

"Leave mommy alone!" Kayley cried. She screamed suddenly as Freya threw her backward toward Kaiba and Yugi.

"Stay away, Kayley!" Freya called.

Kayley picked herself up, sniffling. But she didn't say a word.

Freya took several steps back. "You seem familiar. Who are you?" she asked.

"I'm the infant Diclonius you abandoned when you took that little runt over there!"

Freya frowned, clearly struggling to remember. Then, her eyes widened. "So it is you. You're the male infant I looked at before I came to Kayley. So I passed you. You had a chance at survival because of your strength. It would seem I was correct."

Dy was bristling with anger. "I didn't just have a chance of survival, I was going to survive no matter what. Do you even know who I am?"

"No, and seeing as you threaten me, I don't really care." Freya said nonchalantly. Dy was seething by this time. "I'm going to kill you!" he yelled, finally breaking free of her vectors and rocketing toward her. Freya launched an arm out to grab hold of a streetlight and yank herself out of the way just in time. She regained her balance about thirty feet away as all around her the concrete began to explode outward toward Dy. He quickly fell to a fetal position on the ground, covering his eyes as his vectors deflected the storm of debris she launched at him. He propelled himself into the air once again and hovered, poised. He was panting hard already. "So the rumors about you are true." He said heavily.

"What rumors?" Freya demanded.

"While I slept, I picked up brainwaves from other Diclonii near me. They all seem to call you "Lucy' instead of Freya nowadays."

Freya's eyes widened.

"Who's Lucy?" Yugi asked Kayley. The little girl seemed highly disturbed. "Lucy was the first horns to live after being born." She said. "The horns killed everybody else."

"Why are they calling me Lucy? My name is Freya and they all know it." She said, folding her arms.

"They have heard of your power as a Diclonius and your ability to catch the humans' attention with music."

"That still doesn't explain why they call me Lucy." She snapped.

"It's simple. You are the most powerful Diclonius since Lucy's time. More so than Lucy and Mariko combined. You are the proof that the Diclonii will one day reign over the humans."

"I don't understand a thing you're saying. I'm a freak with horns sticking out of my head and so are you." Freya growled. "Now die already!"

She charged toward him, lashing her arms out ready to tear him apart. He swooped out of danger and onto the roof of one of the remaining boathouses. He disappeared from sight and Freya quickly followed after him. Seconds later, a huge explosion ripped a tremor through the ground.

"We have to get to them!" Emery cried, rushing over. "Their combined force has the power to destroy the entire city in a night!"

Suddenly, Kaiba's phone began to ring and he pulled it out of his pocket.

"What?"

_"Seto, it's bad down here!" _Mokuba exclaimed on the other end. Kaiba grew alarmed suddenly. "What's going on?"

_"One of the buildings near the card shop just collapsed in on itself! I'm thinking there's probably either a bomb or that Freya's around." _

"We're on our way back! Get somewhere safe, and hurry!"

He hung up. "Yugi, we can't wait anymore for the others. A building near your card shop just collapsed and it's probably Freya and Dy. We've got to get back there, now."

"But we'll never get there in time." Yugi said with worry in his voice.

"We won't," Emery said. "But Kayley could."

"Huh?" the little girl said in confusion.

"How can she get there in time to stop it?" Yugi asked.

"Kayley's vectors may be abnormally weak, but she is able to travel great distances simply by using them sort of like springboards. All she has to do is jump from rooftop to rooftop until she gets there. It's fast. What have we got to lose?"

"Everything." Kaiba grumbled. He turned to Kayley. "Do you think you can make it?"

Kayley scrunched her fists and scowled. "Of course I can make it! I want to help!"

She turned to the closest building leading in the direction they'd gone. She took a deep breath and then let it out again. Then, she clenched her fists and squeezed her eyes shut. A gentle breeze began to swirl around her as her vectors emerged.

Suddenly, the imprint of three hands appeared gouged deep within the concrete at the same time Kayley flew into the air toward the roof of the boathouse.

_"Bye daddy!" _

Kaiba grimaced. Emery started laughing. "I suppose she imprinted on you, too." She said with a chuckle. Kaiba glared at her. "Shut up."

"I'm serious." Emery said. "Kayley is truly a messed up case. If it weren't for Freya, she would surely have been killed. But her autism only seems to give her an optimism in the face of danger and that in turn gives her the determination to succeed. But she sees you as a protective figure. She calls Freya her mother because Freya was the first thing she saw. But she calls you her dad because in her mind, a father is one who protects weaker individuals. Obviously, you've done a very good job of keeping Kayley safe and she admires you for that. She'll do anything to return the favor, now."

Kaiba frowned and stared off in the direction Kayley had gone. He found himself suddenly worried about her.

/ooo/

Rumi paused as they reached the wharf, just in time to see Kayley leave over the rooftops. "Woah. I don't believe it." She said in awe. "That little squirt just mastered one of the more challenging aspects of controlling vectors."

Tea, Joey and Tristan all exchanged looks, but said nothing.

A/N: It's hard to concentrate. I've got this horrid pain beneath my ribs and I can't figure out what it is. Oh well. It'll go away. Anyway, I will update soon. And please be patient if I don't update. My grandpa goes into surgery tomorrow that will possibly remove the recently diagnosed prostate cancer and possibly get him to stop smoking. Wish me luck.


	19. Vision

A/N: I'm very tired and this one literally wrote itself

**A/N: **I'm very tired and this one literally wrote itself. Now, this one might make some people cry. I certainly hope not. I'm still deciding as to what I'm going to do.

**Vision**

Mokuba ran outside when he heard another deafening crash not too far away from the card shop. That was when he saw it; the flash as something flew by and slammed hard into the building across the street creating a small crater in the concrete.

"Freya!" he yelled. But she didn't seem to hear him as she jumped back up and dashed into the next street, followed closely by what looked like another Diclonius with bluish hair.

"What the?" he said. He jumped when something suddenly fell out of the tree beside him. He gasped in surprise when he saw it was Kayley. Somehow, her hat had come off and her little horns showed above her hair. She shook her head and stood up. "Mokuba, what are you doing out here?" she asked.

"Where'd you come from?" he exclaimed.

"I jumped on the buildings. Did mommy come here?"

"Yeah, you just missed her." He said, pointing in the direction she'd gone. Kayley smiled. "Thanks!"

She bounded off.

Meanwhile, Yugi, Kaiba and Emery had finally found Tristan, Tea Joey and Rumi. Rumi was less than pleased to see Kaiba. She folded her arms and scowled. "I sure wish I could have killed you." She snapped. Kaiba pretended to ignore her. "Freya and Dy have moved further into the city." He said. He turned to Emery. "But there's something that's bothering me. The name Lucy sounds familiar. Who is she?"

Emery seemed somber. "Lucy was the first Diclonius ever recorded. There may have been many more, but they all likely died in infancy. Lucy was the first who could reproduce. She was killed several years ago and Freya felt it."

"But why are the other Diclonii calling her Lucy now?" Yugi asked. "Dy didn't really go into details."

Emery seemed uncomfortable. "I have a theory." She said. "Like Lucy, Freya has a darker sense of who she is. That's the monstrous part of her I keep describing. But there may be even more to that side of her than we first thought."

"What's that mean?" Tea asked.

"What I believe, is that Freya might in fact be Lucy reincarnate."

Everyone remained silent. Kaiba was the one who finally broke the silence. "That's ridiculous!" he snapped.

"Maybe, maybe not. The Diclonii are very different from humans and Lucy died vengeful, despite having accomplished her goal so many years ago. Even though she had amended her sins in life, she was hesitant to die. In the end, when it was too late to back out, she likely wanted a second chance to escape. Who knows? She might have found a way to avenge her death through Freya."

"If that's even the case," Tea said. "How do we help her?"

"I don't know. If the other half of Freya is in fact Lucy, there may be no way to calm her. There was only one human whom Lucy cared for and he's probably dead. But if Freya can overcome Lucy, we may have a chance."

"Okay, hold it." Joey exclaimed. "This is getting too weird!! First we're on the lookout for a girl with horns and now you're saying that she's the reincarnated form of another girl with horns?"

"I know it's a little sudden to explain my theory, but I've suspected it for many years now. I met Lucy just once, but once was enough. Lucy gained a schizophrenic nature when she was hit in the head with a bullet. Freya holds empathy for humans, while Lucy held only hatred. What reason does Freya have to switch back and forth between hatred and compassion? It can only be Lucy and we have to stop her.

/ooo/

Dy slammed against the concrete of the building and slumped to the ground, stunned and weakened. Freya slowly approached and stretched her arms out to grasp his neck. He choked and glared up at her. "Do you really think you can beat me?" he gasped.

"If I didn't, would I be defeating you right now?" she asked in a strangely dark and raspy voice. Her eyes were a dull ruby red.

"How should I know?" he said, struggling for air. Freya's eyes narrowed.

"Mommy, stop it!"

Freya whirled at the sound of the familiar voice and the ruby faded to her natural eye color. "Kayley, what are you doing here?" she exclaimed, releasing her hold on Dy. He grinned and leapt up, hurtling his arms toward her and tearing off her prosthetic arms, expecting them to be real. As they went flying and she lost her balance, he paused, surprised. "I see you've been in battle before." He said. She got to her feet, wobbly and off balance. Freya glowered at him, the ruby haze returning to her eyes. "So what if I have? I don't need my flesh arms to kill you."

She began to float upwards, all forty-some of her vectors fanning out as far as they would go. They stretched halfway down the street and slowly became visible.

Mokuba, hiding nearby and watching, suddenly had his own flashbacks of the day he and his brother found Freya. It was now that he remembered exactly what she could do. He charged forward. "Freya, stop this now! Stop fighting!" he yelled.

At that same moment, the two groups had finally come into view of the scene and Kaiba saw his brother rush forward toward the combatants. He reflexively started forward, horrified.

"Mokuba, no!" he shouted in alarm.

But it was too late.

As Mokuba approached, Dy turned toward him and snatched him into the air, bringing him up the full thirty meters of his range. As Mokuba struggled, he started to scream painfully.

Suddenly, Dy yelled as Kayley wrapped her one arm firmly around his neck and tugged on his windpipe. He released Mokuba who started the long descent toward the earth—and Kaiba was too far away to do a thing about it but stare in absolute horror. Kayley then dropped her hold on Dy and darted forward, vectors extended toward Mokuba. As she moved, Dy released his own vectors toward her. With a flash of light, her legs suddenly exploded from her body and she fell to the ground, stunned. At the same time, Mokuba hit the ground after his thirty-meter fall and lay still.

All the spectators watched in petrified terror at the horrible sight. Finally, Kaiba broke free of the spell and ran forward, kneeling by his brother. He carefully shook him. But Mokuba remained still. Kaiba didn't know whether he was alive or….

He started to shake.

Freya stood several meters away, frozen, gazing down at Kayley. Kayley had but one limb left and blood was escaping rapidly from her body. She then looked at Mokuba, motionless in his brother's arms. She squeezed her eyes shut and clenched her fists. "How could you?" she muttered.

She didn't notice as the police squad arrived and took her friends to an enclosed circle of police tape nearby. They began to surround her.

Within her darkened mind, a figure began to form, shadowy and far away. Coming toward her. She shook her head and tried to rid herself of the vision that had brought itself on. But it wouldn't go away.

"I don't understand." She whispered, partly to the figure and partly to herself. "Why does this always happen to me? Everyone I love gets hurt and it's all because of me."

"_It's our destiny."_

Freya opened her eyes, but she found she was in a horrible shadowy place. She looked around for her friends, but she saw no one…no one but the figure standing before her.

"Who are you?" she asked.

_"Tell me, who was this world made for?" _

"Huh? The humans, I guess." She said. She tried to see this person clearly. Whoever it was had short pink hair, obviously a girl. At first, she thought it was another Diclonius. But then she saw that there were no horns and she was thrown off. The strange girl smiled. "_I know what you're thinking. Well, I too am a Diclonius just like you. This world wasn't made for us. It was made for the humans. And the humans know this." _

"But what does that have to do with me?" Freya asked.

_"We were born to destroy humans. They destroy us in order to save themselves. But they don't possess the same feelings we do. It's our destiny to turn this world into our world." _

"But how?" Freya asked. The girl smiled again. "_Simple. Let me lead you." _

She reached her hand out toward Freya, who tentatively reached back. As she grasped her hand, Freya felt a strange sensation take over her mind.

_"I'll kill everyone you despise and everyone who despises you. I'll make this world into a world that we can live in, without the humans to interfere." _

Freya closed her eyes.

When she opened them again, she was back in the square outside the shop. Through the soldiers surrounding her, she could see Kaiba still desperately trying to wake his brother. As she observed this, she could feel a sense of pure hatred boiling up inside her. She barely registered the policeman yelling at her to put her hands behind her back.

All she knew was that she wanted them gone. Now.

A/N: Okay, I don't know what I should do, but I'll try to make a good choice. I promise. Now, does anyone who paid attention know what's going on with Freya? If you look back to her past mood swings, it'll make sense.


	20. Vanishing

A/N: This story is rapidly coming to a close

**A/N: **This story is rapidly coming to a close. Only a few more chapters left.

**Vanishing**

All at once, Freya let out a bloodcurdling scream and in that split second, the bodies of six officers seemed to disintegrate where they stood, leaving a grisly pool of blood in their wake. A few other brave officers charged her, guns raised to strike her down. Without blinking, she ripped them in half before they could come close, their final cries echoing long after their torn bodies fell.

Kaiba could only stare in disbelief at what was happening before him. Freya had a terrible expression on her face and her eyes were now pure red. She looked as though she were possessed.

Freya tore through the group of officers, rending their bodies to pieces before they could realize what had happened. Within minutes, the concrete square had become a bloodied battlefield with only a few men still standing. Freya stood in the center of the carnage, staring them down. _"Do you still wish to fight me?"_ she hissed. "_Or would you like to join your fallen comrades?" _

"P-Please, spare us!" One of them cried, trembling as she drew nearer.

"_Why should I? You humans have caused me nothing but pain and grief. With you around, there's no place for me in this world. So it then becomes my duty to make a place." _

The air around her began to swirl in eddies, picking up dust, leaves and droplets of blood. One of the men started to choke and gurgle. With a sickening crunch, she snapped his neck and ripped his head from his body, holding it aloft. The remaining man was whimpering and trembling furiously, trying to back away from her. The ghostly sight of her vectors terrified him even more as they slowly came close to him.

"Stop it!"

Freya paused and turned slowly.

Kaiba had gotten to his feet, the limp body of his little brother supported in his arms. He didn't even so much as flinch when her vectors surrounded him, bracing around his neck and head.

"Stop this. You've done more than enough." He said quietly. He glanced over at Yugi and his friends. Tea had covered her mouth, trying not to be sick at the horrific sight. Joey and Tristan looked deeply disturbed and Yugi appeared petrified. It was clear he was attempting to stay calm. Rumi's face was entirely blank of all emotion. He looked over at Dy, still sitting against the wall of the building. He seemed to have zoned out watching Freya lose control. He then returned his gaze to her. "In less than five minutes, you killed almost a hundred people without any hesitation." He declared. "Before that, your surrogate daughter and my little brother…may have been…killed, also." He said, choking on his own words. He pulled himself together. He looked down at Mokuba. "I don't understand what makes you do this and I doubt I ever will. But I do understand one thing. Anger. That's what drives you, isn't it…Lucy?"

Freya started. Everyone watching behind the tape was stunned. Emery could only draw a faint breath.

_"What did you call me?"_ she hissed.

"I called you by your name. It is Lucy, right?" he said gravely. "Don't lie. You aren't Freya. At least, not anymore you aren't. I knew Freya long ago when we found her on the beach after she'd escaped the first time. She was nothing like this. She didn't choose to fight Rumi when it came time. She protected Mokuba and myself from her, instead at the cost of her arms. I want to know why you've done this. Are you exacting your anger through Freya, Lucy?"

She paused and looked down at the mangled bodies scattered around her. "Yes." She replied, her voice a little more normal, but still different. "You could say that. I can sense her feelings for you and your brother. I can also sense her feelings for that little Diclonius over there. However, Freya was too weak to carry out her destiny and reach her preordained fate."

"And what was that?" Kaiba asked.

"To wipe out the human race as I was originally fated to do. But I was led astray by a common human emotion called love and was unable to complete my task."

"So you're using Freya to accomplish your goals." Kaiba remarked. She nodded. "Yes and I shall continue until no human remains alive. Like me, Freya was also able to reproduce. Our fate lies in destroying the human race and saving the Diclonii all over the world. But it seems that by possessing my spirit, she has also been led astray."

She grew somber here and turned away. "She cares for a human almost as much as I did."

"Who are you talking about?" he asked. She turned, a look of scorn on her face. "Are you really so blind? It's you. It's because of you that she sacrificed so much of her time that could have been spent killing everyone in this city. Because of her feelings for you, she ignored her instinct and it gradually drove her over the edge. Hence, the reason for her asking you to kill her. She was warning you of what was to happen. But now it's far too late. As we speak, there is a much larger regiment coming in from the east. As I did before, I shall take Freya there and carry out her final wishes."

Kaiba suddenly grew alarmed. "Wait, what are you saying?"

"History is destined to repeat itself and Freya will die on the bridge, just as I did. I will be forced to reincarnate until I find a stronger Diclonius who can fulfill our destiny."

"You can't let her die that way!" he protested.

"I hope you said goodbye to her, for this is the last you shall ever see of her." She said. She turned and started off without looking back. Kaiba carefully put his brother down and hurried after her, but she launched herself into the air and over the rooftops toward the bay. She was soon lost to sight. Kaiba was now torn between going after her and staying with his brother.

"Hey, Kaiba!"

He turned. Joey and Yugi were standing there watching him gravely. "Don't let Lucy do this to Freya." Yugi said. "We'll get Mokuba and Kayley to a hospital immediately. You do and prevent this from happening again."

Kaiba hesitated, but knew he could trust Yugi and his friends with his brother and Kayley. He nodded and hurried off in the direction of the bay.

"I'll go too!" Rumi declared. "He may need help!"

She bounded after him, traveling the same way as Lucy.

Yugi bent down beside Mokuba and checked his wrist for a pulse. He sighed when he felt one and realized that he was still hanging on. "I don't know about Kayley, though." He said worriedly. "We have to hurry. I have a very bad feeling about this."

"Right." Said Joey. "When the ambulance gets here, you and I'll go to the bridge and try to help in any way. Tristan and Tea will go with these two."

Yugi nodded and stared off in the direction Kaiba, Rumi and Lucy had disappeared to. "I sure hope this works out." He whispered.

A/N: So Lucy is going to drag Freya into death with her again? What can Kaiba possibly do to stop this? The sad thing is that I doubt Freya will ever learn why Dy was bent on revenge.


	21. Countdown

A/N: I'm too tired to talk right now

**A/N: **I'm too tired to talk right now. So enjoy.

**Countdown**

Kaiba knew where the bridge was in perspective, but hated to admit that he had no idea how to get there from where he was. He was forced to stop and get his bearings.

"You ain't gonna find her that way, bud!"

He turned as Rumi touched down behind him, smirking. "I could get you there much faster." She said snippily.

"I don't have time for you." He snapped.

"Just let me help."

With that, she took off again. This time, Kaiba felt himself being dragged after her. He could feel the tight grip her vectors had on his arm, yet he seemed weightless at the same time as they flew up onto the roof of a building. "Are you sure you know what you're doing?" he asked her.

"Duh. I've lifted way heavier stuff than you before." She bragged. "To my arms, you're about the same as a piece of paper."

She turned out to the horizon. Her smug face turned grim and disturbed. "Woah. I've never seen so many soldiers gathering like that before." She said quietly. Kaiba looked too and instantly saw what she meant. The bridge was in view and a whole hoard of soldiers awaited Freya, controlled by Lucy to arrive so they could shoot her down.

"We have to get there, now." He said.

"I don't know. I want to help Freya, seeing as she's my half-sister. But is she worth getting killed over?"

Kaiba threw her a furious look. "We're going down there." He snapped. "Besides, why are you worried? You can stop bullets."

"Yeah, but not that many at once!" Rumi protested. "My vectors are powerful, but if they fire simultaneously, I've got no chance. And seeing as you're just a wimpy human, you don't have a snowball's chance in hell of getting out of there alive. If they know a human has interacted with a Diclonius, they'll be forced to kill you, too."

"Why?"

"The Diclonii are kept governmentally secret. Only select individuals know we exist. Normally, individuals showing the horns are quarantined and killed. Infants born with horns are killed and their deaths are attributed to SIDS. If people knew about the Diclonii and what we can do, there'd be a massive public panic. So, while we secretly adapt and develop stronger individuals, we endure severe imprisonment while we wait for the strongest Diclonii to set us free"

Kaiba considered this. He looked back at the bridge. "Can you get us down there quickly?" he asked.

Rumi sighed. "You really have a death wish don't you?"

/ooo/

Emery remained worried as she watched the ambulance load the still bodies of Mokuba and Kayley onto stretchers and into the back. She knew that they had a good chance of surviving, provided she remained with Kayley to prevent them realizing what she was and killing her.

But the thought of Lucy controlling Freya disturbed her. Lucy had died vengeful, just as she'd explained. But why take it out on Freya? Was it because Freya was the most powerful recorded Diclonius?

She sighed unhappily. At that moment, her phone rang. She checked the ID. It was Dr. Kelso. Scowling, she answered.

"Emery speaking."

"_Did number 12 track down number 32? We seem to have lost contact with number 16." _

"Oh, I didn't think you'd want my advice since I'm so impossibly negligent." Emery said snippily.

"_Knock it off, this is serious. There are two Diclonii down here on the bridge waiting just in case they try to escape. And from what I can see, there is one more Diclonius and some kid trying to stop number 32 coming onto the bridge." _

Emery's heart stopped.

/ooo/

Lucy paused at the start of the bridge, watching the armed soldiers as they prepared to shoot her. She knew some of them were from the original bunch that did her in. Though much older, they'd be doing it again, at least until her spirit felt at peace. But who knew how long that would take?

She slowly made her way toward them.

_Whump!_

She paused.

"Stop, Freya!"

Deep within her, a voice started screaming. _**Seto, get away from me! It's dangerous! Seto!**_

Lucy scowled and struck out at him, sending him flying back into the steel railing beside the road.

_**Run, kid! **_

__He opened his eyes and stared as she drew closer, dozens of her vectors flying around her. She gazed down at him with cold, unfeeling eyes. He was sure of it. Emery had to be right. This couldn't be Freya.

"Lucy, listen to me." He said. He knew Rumi was standing nearby, watching helplessly as Lucy came closer. Now that she controlled Freya, her vectors and range intensified immensely.

"Lucy, you have to let Freya go." He said. "Your life is already over, but hers hasn't even started yet. You can't do this to her."

"Silence, human." She snapped. "This girl's life is in my hands now. We are one in the same person and she will die here tonight. As will you."

_**Seto, run away! She's still out of range!**_

__Lucy grimaced and put a hand to her head. "We haven't much longer. Soon, reinforcements will arrive. Somebody will die tonight, regardless of what happens."

Her vectors hurtled toward him suddenly.

_**NO!!**_

__Lucy fell back, her hands to the sides of her head as she fell to her knees. She raised her eyes. Kaiba instantly recognized Freya. " Get out of here, kid. She's taking me to my death and she'll take you too!"

"I'm not leaving you, Freya." He declared.

"You have to! I'm not going to let you get killed. You're the only friend I've ever had and I want it to stay that way. I won't let you die."

She started to shake her head furiously and he realized she was trying to fight off Lucy. "Stay out!" she growled. "Leave me alone!"

Kaiba stood up and reached over to her.

"_Freeze, punk!" _

He stopped and turned.

"Step away with your hands where I can see them." The man growled, waving the gun in the direction he wanted Kaiba to go. Kaiba didn't budge.

"Didn't you hear me? I said step away!"

"_Go." _Freya said. "_It's fine. Just go._"

He stood up, but didn't back away. "Freya, wait." He said. She gasped all of a sudden and gritted her teeth. "No, stay away from me!" she cried. The gun fired and the bullet ricocheted off the concrete. Freya opened her eyes.

"Stand up, you little freak." The officer snapped. Freya clumsily got to her feet, gasping for air. "Stay back." She said. "I'm warning you."

"Don't you sass at me." He snapped. "Hands up. Now!"

He suddenly started choking and grasping at his throat. The gun fell to the concrete and backfired on contact, hitting him in the leg. He screamed and fell limp, hanging in the air as his life was drained from him. Both Freya and Kaiba turned.

"Run, sis!" Rumi yelled. "Leave it to—"

But she never finished her sentence as another gun fired somewhere nearby and collided with her arm. She screamed and fell to her knees. "Silver bullets!" she cried in terror. "No! No! No!"

Freya started to shake. "No. This can't be." She said. She turned to Rumi, grabbed her around the waist and threw her behind a pile of wooden crates, out of sight.

She heard the chilling clicking as the guns were prepared to shoot.


	22. Decision

A/N: Sorry for the delay

A/N: Sorry for the delay. Anyway, here's the next chapter and a bit of a surprise for you all.

**Decision**

In the ambulance, Emery stared anxiously down at Mokuba and Kayley, both struggling to stay alive as the technicians worked to keep them stable. Turns out that Kayley had lost almost two pints in blood in so short a time. Emery wasn't sure how valuable blood was to a Diclonius in comparison to a human, but even so, Kayley was still so small. And Mokuba had some head trauma and had probably fractured his skull. That was the extent the men knew so far and she could tell they were nervous. This was the little brother of the infamous Seto Kaiba, after all. Both children were on respirators.

"Hang on, kids." Emery whispered. She looked out the window, wishing she could know what was going on down at the bridge. At the same time, she didn't want to know.

/ooo/

Rumi whimpered in pain as she clutched her arm where the bullet had entered. She dug her fingers into the wound, desperately trying to dislodge the foreign obstruction. Wincing, she gasped in relief when she managed to slide it out of her arm. She clamped her vectors down over the wound to try to slow the bleeding. Her own mutated bacterium would heal the wound.

Suddenly, she started to cry uncontrollably. She was worried sick for Freya, whom she could hear on the bridge. But she dared not come out. Her heart pounded in her chest when she heard the clicking of the rifles.

Her vision began to grow black and she slumped against the crates, losing consciousness.

/ooo/

Rumi awoke to find herself in a shadowy dwelling, unable to see anything around her. "Huh? Where am I?" she asked. She sat up and realized that the pain from her arm was slowly ebbing away. "My arm. It's healed." She exclaimed.

"It certainly is."

Rumi whirled. There was a girl standing before her. She showed short bright pink hair and tiny horns poking above her temples. Her face was friendly and she smiled. "Hello, Rumi."

Rumi blinked. "How do you know my name? Who are you?"

The girl chuckled. "I don't expect you to know me. After all, I died a few years ago. My name is Nana."

"Nana? You mean number 7? The one who went up against Lucy and lived?" Rumi exclaimed in shock. Nana nodded. "Yes. And it would seem you are more familiar with our story than I first believed. There was a reason for our deaths, you know." She said, sitting down in front of her. "Are you aware of the Diclonius, number 14?"

Rumi frowned. "Um…that's Kayley, right?"

"Yes. Kayley possesses a very important role in our story."

"Who are you talking about?" Rumi asked in confusion.

"Myself, Lucy and Mariko. Like Lucy and me, Mariko is also dead. However, our spirits have not quite crossed over yet."

"Say what?"

"It's simple, Rumi. All three of us died with a vengeance. Therefore, we could not pass on into the next life. As a result, we have been reincarnated into current individuals."

Rumi was dumbfounded. "How is that possible? Who are you?"

At this, Nana started to laugh. "It's obvious. You are me, Rumi. This is why I appear to you, because you are my reincarnated form. Lucy appears to Freya and Mariko will appear to whomever she was reincarnated as."

"Kayley!" Rumi cried in alarm. "Mariko is Kayley?"

Nana grew grave. "I'm afraid so. Mariko was vengeful because she died without ever getting the chance to know her father. I was vengeful because I died soon after I was freed from my awful prison. Lucy is vengeful because she died in such a dishonorable manner after having said goodbye to the person she loved the most. And that person, who also passed on, was reincarnated also, because he felt guilty for what happened to Lucy."

Rumi hummed. "Let me guess. That person Lucy loved was reincarnated as Seto Kaiba."

Nana frowned. "Well, yes and no. Something happened with his spirit. I can sense that this one you speak of possesses another powerful spirit deep inside him. I suspect that only a fraction of Lucy's loved one was reincarnated into a new form and shares that body with the more powerful spirit. The other half of the spirit is probably stuck in limbo until this fraction is appeased."

Rumi was silent. "So, what can I do to stop this?"

"I'm afraid that the events have been set in motion. There is really nothing that can be done."

Rumi felt her heart clench. "Does that mean that Lucy will never be appeased?" she asked.

"I can't say." Nana replied. "But whatever happens, I can assure you that the most likely outcome will be the death of Lucy's current form."

/ooo/

"I said to put your hands up!" the officer yelled, the rifle shaking in his hands. Freya stood up too. She stepped in front of Kaiba. "Don't shoot. If I surrender, you're to let him go." She snapped.

"Why should I make a deal with a horned freak like you?"

"Because if you don't, I'll be forced to kill you." She hissed.

As she spoke, she clasped her head suddenly and fell forward, yelling in agony. Both Kaiba and the officer froze in confusion at her strange behavior.

/ooo/

"Why are you tormenting me like this?" Freya yelled as Lucy came closer to her.

"Because I want revenge for my death." Lucy said ominously.

"But Lucy, you achieved so much in your lifetime. All of the Diclonii at the facility and possibly around the world know about you. They know that you protected a human and gave your life to protect the life of him and another Diclonius. They consider you a martyr and a role model. All around the world, I can sense others of our kind preparing to break free. It's been so long since you died. You're the one who predicted that given five years, our kind would outnumber human births. It's been longer than that. You were right. Soon, there'll be enough of us to wipe out the humans and remake this world! Please, listen to me!"

"I am unable to believe you." Lucy replied. "I can't forgive the humans for what they've done to me."

"That's just it." Freya pleaded. But at the same time, the meaning in Lucy's words hit her. Her heart began to pound furiously. "You mean…?"

Lucy nodded. "Yes. And you obviously can't forgive them, either."

Freya was downcast. "So there's no other choice if I wish to save the one I love." She whispered.

"I'm afraid so." Lucy replied quietly.

Freya looked up, her eyes blazing. "I'll do it."

A/N: So, technically, I was able to use the original Elfen Lied characters. Just not in the way you expected. And what is to become of Freya? Only I will know. Oh, and Dy didn't disappear. He'll come back.


	23. Finality

A/N: Warning, this chapter may make some of you cry

A/N: Warning, this chapter may make some of you cry. If that's the case, I apologize. It's rather short, but I had to end it this way. It doesn't work any other way. This story is just about done and then I can go straight back to work on Of Life and Arrangements. I just couldn't stop working on this one, for fear I'd lose interest.

**Finality **

Freya stopped writhing and screaming and lay still on the concrete. The officer, still trembling, swallowed and started forward, reaching out toward her. When she moved to rise suddenly, he jerked back and aimed his rifle at her. A sound like thunder echoed all around them and Freya gasped in pain, clutching her shoulder. Blood from the shot wound ran freely between her fingers. She slowly got to her feet. She glared at the officer. "So be it." She growled. She turned to Kaiba. At the same moment, the soldier's head was ripped from his body and the rest of him was sent flying over the bridge into the waters below.

"I want you to leave here." She said, in a voice that wasn't really her own.

"I'm not leaving." Kaiba declared. "I won't let you down again."

"What do you mean 'again'?" she asked. "You never let me down. Not ever. In fact, it's the other way around. I wasn't able to protect you the first time. But I won't fail this time. Now get out of here. I'm going to take down as many of them as I can."

"Freya, stop. If you leave now, you can still escape." He said in an attempt to persuade her. The rest of the soldiers were starting toward them, creating a barricade around them. Soon, there would be no way to escape.

"Leave, Seto." Freya said. "My life is over. It was deemed that way since the day I was born. You do not share my fate. You were simply intertwined with it for awhile. You can avoid it."

"Freya, I can't let them kill you."

"Why are you so stubborn?" she demanded. "The entire time I was locked in the facility, I thought of you constantly. I felt horrible for making you witness such violence and anger. I wanted to escape, knowing I'd probably never make it out of this place. I fought armies to get here. Now, I'm weary of this world. I'm hoping that with my death, Lucy will be at peace and pass on. And I can finally leave the torment and anguish a Diclonius must bear. As long as I live in the world of humans, I'll suffer constantly, and so will everyone around me. I don't want to drag you down any further, Seto."

"I don't care. Freya, I don't understand why I forgot you, but hear me, I don't want to forget you again. Why can't you just try?"

She turned at the sound of the rifles clicking into place. "It's too late." She whispered.

/ooo/

From the top of a nearby building, Dy could only watch in horror at the scene happening down on the bridge. It was all he could do not to go down there and prevent this whole nightmare. But he knew that she wouldn't appreciate that. As much as he wanted her approval of him, he knew that Freya would always see him as an enemy. The many days he spent in his sleep dreaming about how he would meet Freya, how she would accept him as her son and how they would always be together, gave him hope. But he knew that they were just dreams. They would never become reality. He knew now that his only option was to escape, to do his best to continue the spreading of the Diclonii. He would do it for his mother and hope that she would watch him from the next life, guiding him as he could never guide himself.

So, with tears in his eyes, he turned away and hurtled over rooftops until he could no longer sense her.

He had no choice but to move on.

/ooo/

Both Kaiba and Freya stood their ground as the soldiers aimed their rifles at them. Freya knew that there was no escaping now. They were both doomed. As the triggers were pulled back and the rifles shot their deadly occupants toward them, everything seemed to move so much more slowly to Freya. She scowled and then whirled, throwing her arms around her friend and pulling them both to their knees as she released a flurry of her vectors to surround them. She felt the bullets raging into her body as she absorbed most of them, knowing in her heart that at such close range, they'd simply pass right through her and into her only friend. Her last thoughts were of Kayley, who would grow up wondering where her mother had gone, of Rumi, the sister she wished she could have known better and of her own mother, Emery, and how she'd let her down. She could feel Kaiba's life draining from him as the bullets struck him as she'd predicted. She pulled her dying vectors closer, attempting to sway the barrage of the crude weapons, but her strength was slowly ebbing away. She was dying. She felt so hopeless in those last seconds, knowing that he would die along with her, simply for being her friend. Perhaps one day they would meet again and she could tell him how sorry she was for everything. Tell him how she wished he'd met someone else, someone who could actually stand up for herself in the heat of battle. Someone who wasn't weak. Perhaps she'd get the opportunity someday to tell him.

Then, the bullets pierced through her skull and shattered her head, ending her life in an instant.

A/N: Waaah!! I'm actually crying here!! They're both dead!! Why oh why am I so stinking cruel!! Why can't I be nicer to my characters, whether or not they're mine?? Please forgive me!!


	24. Requiem

A/N: Well, here it is

A/N: Well, here it is. The last chapter of this story. I hope you all like it. The ending is a little bittersweet, but I think it's good.

**Requiem**

There were familiar voices all around him as he slowly woke up.

_"I believe he's pulled through. Seems the worst is over, now." _

_"That's good to hear. His brother will be glad to know that." _

His eyes opened slowly, the images fuzzy. He sat up and winced.

"Hey, you're awake!" someone exclaimed. Kaiba shook his head. Where was he? The last thing he remembered was watching Freya stare down the army of soldiers on the bridge. He looked around. He was in hospital.

"What happened?" he asked. He cleared his throat.

"Well," said someone beside him, making him jump. " You went through a simple procedure to remove a few bullets. It only took an hour, since they just barely pierced the skin. All you needed were stitches. I must say, I never believed in miracles until today."

Kaiba could only stare. He looked down at his hands. He was still in his own clothes, so he hadn't been there long. He frowned. "I can't remember what happened." He said. "Where's Mokuba?"

The doctor hummed gravely. "Well, his fall fractured his skull and he's currently recovering from surgery, but he may have problems lingering for the rest of his life. Other than that, he's fine."

Kaiba stared at the floor. He had seen Yugi, Joey, Tristan, Tea, Rumi and Emery in the room. He didn't see Kayley or Freya.

"What about the others?" he asked. "Kayley, is she okay?"

"We've closed the main blood vessels in her legs and shut them. Your friend Emery here has ordered out for prosthetics for her."

"And Freya?" Kaiba continued. Here, the entire room grew silent. Kaiba stood up, ignoring the pain. "Where's Freya?" he asked. "She came back with you guys, right?"

"Um, Kaiba." Yugi said. "Freya isn't here."

"What?" he said, hoping he'd misunderstood.

"She…she died on the bridge." Tristan muttered. "It's because of her that you survived. By the time the cops arrived to break up those soldiers, Freya was in a bad state."

Kaiba felt his mind go numb at those words. "No way." He mumbled.

"I'm afraid so." The doctor said quietly. " I've never seen so many bullet wounds on a single victim. She was dead the minute she hit the ground. Somehow, she was able to prevent the bullets from passing through her body to hit you. At near point-blank range, you should very well be dead right now.

Kaiba sat back down, numb. He couldn't believe it. She was gone, taken from him yet again and so suddenly. He looked up. "Where is she now?" he asked.

"I've arranged for a private burial." Emery whispered. "No one is to know where she is buried but a few select individuals. If scientists were to dig her up, they might uncover something even more dangerous than the vectors and besides, I don't want her remains disturbed."

"But where is she?" Kaiba wanted to know, getting back to his feet.

"Well, she's currently in the hospital morgue." The doctor explained. Before they could register what happened, Kaiba was gone.

/ooo/

He found his own way to the hospital morgue, knowing he was being followed by the doctors. He did his best to ignore the pain from his wounds as he pushed the door open into the darkened room. There were four tables, each one with a sheet covering a body underneath. He pushed back his natural fear and moved inside. He approached each of the tables in turn, feeling the heads for horns along the temples. Finally, he found her on the fourth table. He carefully lifted back the sheet over her head. He drew in a sharp breath.

Freya's face was chalky white and covered in miniscule holes caked in dried blood. Her horns were chipped and cracked, her face frozen in a permanent expression of pain.

He felt a chill go through him when he saw this grotesque version of his old friend. Though he hated to come to terms with it, seeing her like this was proof enough. She was dead.

While he wanted to move away, he couldn't tear his eyes away from her. She had pretty much been his only friend save for his brother. And until Mokuba woke up, he was completely alone in the world, now. He knew now that she had died to save him. The bullets had been silver and had penetrated her vectors with ease, but she'd released them anyway, in some hope that she could slow their progress. She had, but at such a horrible price.

He heard small footsteps in the corridor and turned. It was Rumi.

"I see you found her." Rumi murmured. She slowly came forward and stood beside him, staring at the body of her half-sister. "I'm…I'm glad you survived. Freya wanted you to. Otherwise, she wouldn't have protected you."

"I know." He said. He felt a small bond with the Diclonius, now. They'd both lost someone dear to them. For Rumi, she'd lost her last remaining family.

To his surprise, Rumi started to cry. "Why'd she leave me like this?" she yelled. She lashed out and seized Freya around the neck. "You idiot, why'd you have to go and do something stupid like die? Huh? Why'd you have to be so stupid on me? You were smarter than that! You stupid idiot!"

"Rumi! Rumi, get a grip on yourself!" Kaiba yelled, pulling her off the body. As she fell to the hard marble floor, he couldn't help but feel a little the same way. No matter how you looked at it, Freya was gone.

/ooo/

A few weeks later, Kaiba sat at his desk in his office, trying to work, but always letting his mind wander back to the private funeral for Freya. Before her burial, Emery had had her horns amputated so in case she was ever dug up, people would believe she was an ordinary human. She'd given the horns to Kaiba and though some would find it insane that he kept them, somehow, they gave him comfort. He kept them in a little box in his briefcase, but never looked at them. Just knowing they were there eased his mind from the events leading to her death.

A few days before, Rumi had arrived at his home to announce she was going to go look for Dy, who'd vanished sometime after Freya's death. She said that whether or not they got along, they were still family. Kaiba had wished her luck and said she could always find help with him and Mokuba.

By now, he'd lost contact with Emery and had no idea where she was. He figured the most likely conclusion was that she'd quit her job at the facility across the bay and disappeared. She would probably try to protect Diclonii she came across. But it wouldn't matter in the end. Kaiba knew that Lucy had set in motion the ultimate genocide of the human race. It was only a matter of time before the Diclonii made their escapes and flooded the earth with their vendettas against the humans. There would always be a few who hold empathy toward humans, like Kayley. But the majority would unleash their rage without a thought. Chilling as it was, Kaiba knew there was nothing that could be done at this point. He could only hope that he and Mokuba wouldn't be around to see it. From here on out, the only people who were safe from their wrath were future Diclonius infants born to unsuspecting human parents.

Somehow, despite this knowledge, he was able to remain calm and go about his daily life. Each day could be his last, but he pretended not to care. He expected it to probably drive him crazy after awhile.

The door to his office opened and Roland entered, leading two children behind him. Kaiba had assigned Roland to watch over Mokuba whenever he couldn't himself. As the doctors predicted, Mokuba's head injuries had left lingering problems. Mokuba no longer recognized Kaiba and had virtually lost the use of his legs due to spinal damage discovered after the surgery. He was forced to wear metal braces that made him stumble constantly.

The other child was in a wheelchair, both of her legs missing and a prosthetic arm controlled by a single vector. Kayley smiled at Kaiba and looked at Mokuba. "We're learning the alphabet." She announced. Her human disorder of autism made her a slow learner, but she was ever-patient and willing to learn and try her best. She'd taken her 'mother's' death relatively well. She guided her new friend Mokuba around with the wheelchair while he walked beside her. Until he could regain his life, he would always have a blank look on his face.

Kaiba stood up and turned to Roland. "Thank you." He said.

"No problem, sir." Roland replied, leaving. Kaiba looked at Mokuba and Kayley. He'd legally adopted Kayley so she wouldn't be sent to a home. She'd become his daughter, in a sense.

"Are you both doing all right?" he asked quietly. Kayley nodded exuberantly. "Yes, daddy! We're good. I shared my lunch with big brother, today." She said in reference to Mokuba. Kaiba smiled a little. "That's good. What do you want to do?"

"I want to stay here with big brother and daddy!" Kayley announced.

Kaiba sighed. What with taking care of his now disabled brother and adopted daughter, his life had become quite interesting. He would always miss Freya, but he would always have Kayley, now. As Kayley went over to the book shelves and took one down to read to Mokuba, Kaiba pretended to work, all the while listening to them as they sounded out the sentences.

Things wouldn't ever return to normal, and he knew that he'd probably have a difficult time accepting his brother's new needs, now. But he was pretty sure he could handle it. After all, he knew that whatever he decided to do with his new life, he could be certain that Freya would be there too, whatever happened.

A/N: Ta-dah!! The ending. I hope this story was satisfactory to you all. I'm sorry I left you all with questions, like will Mokuba ever recognize his brother again, or will Freya be reincarnated once more or what. But I'm afraid I'll have to let you decide on all of those. Now, good morning and if I don't see ya, good afternoon, good evening and good night! –Quote from _The Truman Show_.

Thank you!!

Luna Silvereyes


End file.
